Heat wave brings red alerts, closures and travel disruption across Europe
France logged its hottest day on record as dangerous heat closed schools, disrupted rail travel and strained hospitals across parts of Europe.
By Priya Raghavan · Science Reporter
3 min read
A severe early-summer heat wave has triggered health warnings, school closures and transport disruption across Europe, AFP reported. France recorded its hottest day since national measurements began in 1947, according to Meteo-France, underscoring the public-health risks from extreme heat.
Meteo-France said its national temperature indicator, which averages daytime and nighttime readings from 30 weather stations, reached 29.8C based on provisional data. The agency also said France had just gone through its hottest night on record.
AFP reported that schools and tourist sites closed early in some areas, while rail operators canceled or discouraged journeys as authorities issued high-level warnings across several countries. Scientists have identified recurring heat waves as a marker of global warming and warned they are expected to become more frequent, longer and more intense as fossil fuel use drives climate change, AFP reported.
Health alerts widen
Spain placed nearly the entire country under heat alerts, according to national weather agency AEMET. Parts of both southern and northern Spain were put under the highest warning level for what the agency called “extraordinary danger.”
Authorities in Spain and other countries urged people to check on vulnerable residents, drink water and avoid strenuous activity during the hottest hours, AFP reported. In Madrid, where the temperature reached 38C, removal worker Valentin Fernandez told AFP that work inside his truck was “horrendous” as he hauled furniture and boxes in the heat.
The SATSE nurses union in Spain said a lack of air conditioning in some hospitals was putting patients and staff at risk. The union said temperatures in parts of hospital buildings had reached or exceeded 30C, while authorities had advised closing windows and lowering blinds.
Italy’s Health Ministry issued red heat wave alerts for 15 cities, including Rome and Milan, AFP reported. In Milan and Turin, blackouts hit after a surge in air-conditioning use, according to AFP.
Schools and rail services affected
Sebastien Leas, a forecaster at Meteo-France, told AFP that a large mass of hot air from North Africa was covering western Europe. He said a cold front off Portugal was drawing warm air northward, while high pressure at altitude was compressing the air mass and raising temperatures further.
In England, dozens of schools planned early closures on Tuesday and said they would remain shut for two additional days, AFP reported. One school in Buckinghamshire said most of its buildings could not be cooled adequately and that outdoor shade was limited.
The UK Met Office issued only its second red heat warning, covering parts of central and southern England on Wednesday and Thursday, according to AFP. The agency said temperatures could reach 40C, which would be unprecedented for the time of year, and Met Office chief scientist Stephen Belcher described the prospect as “sobering.”
A railway line linking northeast England with London issued a “do not travel” advisory, AFP reported.
Drowning deaths and workplace concerns
French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu warned during a crisis meeting of what he called “a tragic scourge of drownings,” saying 40 mostly young people had drowned since June 18, AFP reported. In Germany, police said five people died in swimming accidents over the weekend.
At a Paris primary school, AFP reported, parents taped survival blankets to windows and pooled money for playground shade. Gaelle Roubere, from the parents’ association at Marsoulan primary school, said fans provided to the school did not lower classroom temperatures.
Workers at a Stellantis site near Mulhouse in France said they would end shifts early from Tuesday through Sunday over working conditions in the heat, AFP reported. Union representative Salah Keltoumi said some workshops were close to 38C to 40C.
Austria, Poland, Hungary and Croatia also issued heat warnings for parts of their territory, according to AFP. Emergency services in Hungary and Slovenia reported elderly people seeking help, while Croatian firefighters said they had contained several wildfires.
This story draws on original reporting from Phys.org.