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At least 18 dead in France as much of Europe grapples with extreme heat
At least 18 people died in France, including two children left in a hot car, as a heat wave gripped Europe and smashed temperature records in several cities Monday. As schools in France closed or modified their schedules, forecasters in Britain predicted temperatures could break June records this week.
The temperature in Bordeaux in France's western wine country rose to 41.9 C, breaking a record set last August. In Poitiers, in central France, it reached 41.2 C, surpassing a previous high set in 1947. In San Sebastián, in Spain's traditionally cooler north, the temperature was expected to reach 40 C.
An April report by the World Meteorological Organization found Europe is warming at more than double the global rate. First responders were unable to resuscitate two children, aged 2 and 4, who were found unconscious by their mother in the family car outside their home, said a prosecutor in Carpentras, in southeastern France.
At least 18 people died in France as a heat wave smashed temperature records across Europe.
Three elderly people, aged between 80 and 95, died over the weekend in the Bordeaux region from health problems caused by the heat wave, local government official Sophie Brocas told France TV late Sunday. "Swim only in places that are supervised," French Civil Safety service spokesperson Jérôme Boulanger said after 13 people were reported drowned from Sunday into Monday.
The weather pattern affecting large parts of Europe is known as an Omega block because it takes the shape of the Greek letter, with a bulge of hot air in the middle and cooler air either side, said Clair Barnes, a research associate in extreme weather and climate at Imperial College in London. "It's drawing warm air up from North Africa, from the Sahara, and that's why we have this really intense heat."
The Met Office, Britain's national weather forecaster, said on Monday that a four-day heat wave across southern and central England and parts of Wales could push temperatures above 39 C in some places. That would easily shatter the previous June record of 35.6 C set in 1957 and matched in 1976.
"We are seeing temperatures between five and 10 degrees above normal for this time of year, and in some northern areas even more than 10 degrees above average," said Rubén del Campo, spokesperson for AEMET, Spain's meteorological agency. Italy issued red heat alerts for 12 cities Monday.
Birds such as swifts, swallows, sparrows and starlings, which make their nests in the eaves of roofs, have been particularly affected by abnormally high temperatures, said Romaine de Jaegere, founder of an animal refuge in Temploux, Belgium.
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