The severe heatwaves across Europe have been linked to an increasing number of deaths in several countries after temperatures hit above 40 degrees Celsius.
According to experts, the June heatwave has become unprecedented due to its clear links to climate change.
According to reports released on Wednesday, Spain experienced the largest number of heat deaths during the heatwaves.
Spain’s health department recorded an extra 1,029 deaths attributed to the heat waves in June.
The five-day heatwaves in the country were characterized by temperatures above 40°C and marked the second-hottest June on record.
Spain’s Meteorological Agency reported that June was also characterized by many unprecedented temperature records.
However, during the 30 days of June, a total of 165 maximum temperatures were exceeded at local weather stations, 20 of which became the all-time highest temperature while the highest minimum temperatures exceeded 225.
In France, human casualties from extreme weather conditions have also been reported. According to preliminary statistics from the Health Ministry, at least 300 excess deaths occurred amid unusually early heatwaves in May, and the majority of the victims were aged 75 and above.
The deaths occurred as 17 departments of the country were issued amber heat warnings say AFP report.
Heatwaves gripped large swathes of the continent with the authorities declaring extreme heat warnings or “red warnings” for countries like Hungary, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, Slovakia and Bosnia and Herzegovina due to the lack of cooling off in sight.
Climate researchers from the World Weather Attribution said that the event was the most severe June heatwave in the history of Europe as such events would be “virtually impossible” without anthropogenic climate change.
Moreover, Germany witnessed a record heatwave with the national weather service (DWD) revealing that the town of Coschen in Brandenburg attained a temperature of 41.7°C on Sunday, breaking the country’s highest temperature record for three days consecutively.
While some southern European nations faced the problem of extreme heat, Portugal was getting ready to experience harsh weather with the country’s weather bureau issuing red warnings for Lisbon and Setúbal after reports of the region facing a temperature of up to 44°C.
Croatia warned its citizens about the heat wave through red alerts for the country’s capital Zagreb and also its coastal cities Split and Dubrovnik.
In Poland, the extreme heat caused fatalities in a cycling race near Warsaw, where two people aged 30 and 71 were said to have died due to a presumed heat-related condition.
Also, the United Kingdom witnessed extremely high temperatures in which 37.7°C was recorded at Lingwood, Strumpshaw Hill in Norfolk, which is the highest ever recorded temperature in the month of June. However, despite the prediction of another heat wave, meteorologists say it will not be as intense as that recorded last week.
According to experts, this heat wave has brought out the dangers associated with increasing global temperatures, especially in certain regions in central and eastern Europe, where most of the population reside in prefabricated concrete apartment buildings that heat up easily during such extremes in weather conditions.