France has recorded around 1 000 excess deaths since June 24, 2026 as an exceptional heatwave swept across the country, with 85% of the deaths involving people aged 65 and older, according to preliminary figures released by France’s Public Health Agency (SPF). The agency warned the data remain preliminary and are expected to increase as additional mortality reports are received.
Germany provisionally recorded its highest air temperature on record on June 26, 2026 as an exceptional late-June heatwave continued to rewrite temperature records across Europe, prompting widespread red heat warnings, disrupting public life and raising concerns over growing impacts on health, infrastructure and ecosystems.
Heat Advisories and Extreme Heat Watches have been issued across parts of Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota ahead of intensifying heatwave beginning Sunday, June 28, 2026. Heat index values are forecast to exceed 38°C (100°F) across much of the region, with some areas expected to reach 41 to 43°C (105 to 110°F) through Tuesday or Thursday, depending on location.
A dangerous heatwave is forecast to intensify across much of the central and eastern United States starting Sunday, June 28, 2026. High temperatures up to 38°C (100°F) and heat index values reaching 38 to 43°C (100 to 110°F), locally as high as 46°C (115°F), through the Independence Day holiday weekend.
The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) placed much of the Netherlands under its first-ever Code Red warning for extreme heat on Friday after forecasting oppressive conditions, heat stress levels of 9 to 10 and temperatures reaching up to 40°C (104°F) in isolated locations.
Multiple countries across Europe established new June temperature records this week as an exceptional heatwave continued to intensify, pushing temperatures above 40°C (104°F) across large parts of the continent. In France, authorities said at least 55 people had drowned while attempting to cool off during the prolonged heatwave, as hospitals, emergency services, and governments struggled to respond to its escalating impacts, while Spain reported at least 212 heat-related fatalities from June 21 to 24.
Temperatures reached 36.7°C (98.1°F) at Merryfield, Somerset, on June 25, 2026, provisionally making it the hottest June day on record in the United Kingdom, according to the UK Met Office. The agency also reported new provisional June records in Wales and record-equalling heat in Northern Ireland.
The UK Met Office has issued a Red Warning for Extreme Heat for Friday, June 26, 2026, marking the first time in the history of the current weather warnings system that red warnings have been issued for extreme heat for three consecutive days.
Spain’s public mortality-monitoring system (MoMo) estimated that high temperatures were linked to 212 deaths between June 21 and 24, as the country’s first official heat wave of 2026 brought temperatures near 40°C (104°F) and higher across large areas.
Extreme heat continued to spread across Europe on June 24, 2026, prompting widespread red alerts and health warnings across Europe. The prolonged heatwave driven by a strong upper-level ridge is affecting much of Western, Central, and Southern Europe, with temperatures forecast to remain 3 to 10°C (5.4 to 18°F) above seasonal averages and locally exceed 40°C (104°F) through the end of June.
