A record-breaking heatwave has killed at least 60 people across western and central Europe, with French authorities reporting 40 drownings since 18 June as people sought relief in rivers and lakes. France on Wednesday recorded its hottest day since measurements began in 1947, the national weather agency Météo-France said, with a nationwide average temperature of 30°C, surpassing the previous day’s record. The United Kingdom logged its hottest June day at 36.1°C in southern England, according to the Met Office, while Spain broke its June heat record with an average of 28.17°C on Tuesday, its Aemet agency reported.

Red heat alerts covered large parts of France, Italy, Spain and the UK. In France, more than half the country was under the highest warning level, and power outages left 68,000 households in the northwestern department of Finistère without electricity after a transformer failed, local officials said. British health authorities issued a red alert for central and southern England and Wales, prompting school closures and train cancellations. Italy placed 16 cities under red alert, with campaigners from Greenpeace detecting surface temperatures of 80°C near Rome’s Termini railway station. At least three elderly people died near Bordeaux and two children were found dead in a hot car, medical sources told Reuters, while Spain reported two heatstroke deaths among the elderly.

The extreme temperatures are being driven by a heat dome — a persistent high-pressure system that traps hot air — and a scientific study published this week found the event was “significantly exacerbated by human-induced climate change,” without which temperatures would have been 2–4°C cooler. The head of the UN’s IPCC climate panel, Jim Skea, said current readings exceeded some scientific projections. The World Health Organization warned that the heatwave, which has also raised air pollution, was endangering health and urged investment in climate-resilient services. A separate analysis by Climate Analytics estimated that combined heat and drought events already reduce average European household incomes by nearly 3%, with low-income households losing disproportionately more.

Meteorological agencies forecast a gradual easing of temperatures by the weekend, though red alerts remain in place across several countries. French ministers have described the country as now facing the reality of being a “hot country,” requiring adaptation in urban planning and public health. The provisional death toll is expected to rise as authorities continue to assess the full impact of the heatwave.