{"id":507313,"date":"2026-06-23T14:58:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-23T14:58:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/507313\/"},"modified":"2026-06-23T14:58:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T14:58:09","slug":"europe-heatwave-live-forty-people-drown-in-france-met-office-warns-uk-temperatures-could-reach-39c-europe-weather","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/507313\/","title":{"rendered":"Europe heatwave live: Forty people drown in France; Met Office warns UK temperatures could reach 39C | Europe weather"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our European community affairs correspondent, Ashifa Kassam<\/a>, has filed a report about the 40 people who are reported to have drowned while swimming in unsupervised areas across France in recent days. Here is an extract from her story<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a tragic scourge of drownings,\u201d the French prime minister, S\u00e9bastien Lecornu, said on Tuesday. \u201cThe latest figures we\u2019ve received are 40 deaths since 18 June. Most of the victims are young people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lecornu was preparing to chair a crisis meeting with ministers to address the ferocious early summer heatwave that has left parts of western France<\/a> bracing for temperatures of up to 43C (109F).<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re experiencing an episode of exceptional intensity,\u201d Lecornu said. \u201cEvery day and every night, local and national temperature records are being broken.\u201d<\/p>\n

Europe temperature map.<\/a><\/p>\n

The national weather service, M\u00e9t\u00e9o-France, said 54 departments had been placed under a red heatwave alert as \u201coppressive and exhausting\u201d heat smothered about half of the country.<\/p>\n

It said overnight temperatures were the hottest since record-keeping began in 1947.<\/p>\n

Early on Tuesday, France\u2019s national heat index, an average of the day and night-time highs measured at 30 weather stations across France, reached a record 21.6C, according to preliminary figures. The previous record of 21.4C was set on 25 July 2019.<\/p>\n

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Key events<\/p>\n

France\u2019s government said that 1,800 schools were closed because of the heat today, and another 8,000 shortened their hours to send pupils home early amid the soaring temperatures, according to the Agence France-Presse (AFP) news agency.<\/p>\n

Share<\/a>Hundreds of schools in England and Wales to close in heatwave\"RichardRichard Adams<\/p>\n

Hundreds of schools across the south of England and Wales are expected to close or vary their hours this week, in an effort to combat the extreme heat and conditions labelled as dangerous by education unions.<\/p>\n

School leaders said they had warned parents about potential closures on Wednesday and Thursday, with many opting to end the day early to avoid the worst of the afternoon heat.<\/p>\n

Headteachers say they are deploying fans and portable air conditioning in classrooms where possible, although several reported that supplies of fans at local hardware stores had already sold out.<\/p>\n

Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union, said it could be dangerous for schools to remain open unless they were able to mitigate the heat, and warned:<\/p>\n

double quotation markOur Victorian school buildings have become greenhouses. The government must step up. We need urgent, massive capital investment to retrofit our ageing school estates with proper ventilation, shading, and climate-resilient cooling infrastructure. Expecting schools to carry on like normal right now is dangerous.<\/p>\n

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The management of the Louvre in Paris has said the museum will close early (at 4pm instead of 6pm) from Wednesday to Saturday because of the heatwave in France<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The museum said in a statement<\/a> that \u201cintense temperatures\u201d have caused \u201cdifficult visiting and working conditions\u201d during the hottest hours of the day. Explaining the reason for closing early, it said:<\/p>\n

double quotation markIts historic building, while naturally resilient in certain parts of its architecture, remains fragile and is not sufficiently adapted to climate change. <\/p>\n

Its 73,000 square meters of museum space are not uniformly exposed to the sun, resulting in temperature increases in certain areas that no longer guarantee the comfort of visitors or staff. The heat buildup is greatest at the end of the day, exacerbated by the high volume of visitors.<\/p>\n

The Louvre\u2019s teams are working diligently to monitor the temperature in the museum\u2019s various areas and open and close galleries accordingly. The Louvre museum is closely monitoring the situation and will continue to adapt its opening hours and operations as the situation evolves.<\/p>\n

Tourists walk past the Louvre museum in Paris on 28 May 2026 amid soaring temperatures. Photograph: St\u00e9phane de Sakutin\/AFP\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n

Our European community affairs correspondent, Ashifa Kassam<\/a>, has filed a report about the 40 people who are reported to have drowned while swimming in unsupervised areas across France in recent days. Here is an extract from her story<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a tragic scourge of drownings,\u201d the French prime minister, S\u00e9bastien Lecornu, said on Tuesday. \u201cThe latest figures we\u2019ve received are 40 deaths since 18 June. Most of the victims are young people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lecornu was preparing to chair a crisis meeting with ministers to address the ferocious early summer heatwave that has left parts of western France<\/a> bracing for temperatures of up to 43C (109F).<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re experiencing an episode of exceptional intensity,\u201d Lecornu said. \u201cEvery day and every night, local and national temperature records are being broken.\u201d<\/p>\n

Europe temperature map.<\/a><\/p>\n

The national weather service, M\u00e9t\u00e9o-France, said 54 departments had been placed under a red heatwave alert as \u201coppressive and exhausting\u201d heat smothered about half of the country.<\/p>\n

It said overnight temperatures were the hottest since record-keeping began in 1947.<\/p>\n

Early on Tuesday, France\u2019s national heat index, an average of the day and night-time highs measured at 30 weather stations across France, reached a record 21.6C, according to preliminary figures. The previous record of 21.4C was set on 25 July 2019.<\/p>\n

Share<\/a>Heat could quickly become a ‘matter of life and death’ for most vulnerable, IFRC warns<\/p>\n

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has warned the heat could become a matter of life and death for the most vulnerable.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe coming days pose serious health risks,\u201d Mary Friel, the IFRC\u2019s senior climate policy officer, told journalists in Geneva. \u201cFor thousands of people across Europe<\/a>, extreme temperatures, without action, can quickly become a matter of life and death.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the Guardian\u2019s Europe environment correspondent, Ajit Niranjan, notes in this useful explainer<\/a>, older people, and particularly those with underlying illnesses, make up the bulk of heat-related deaths.<\/p>\n

Poorer people \u2013 who are less likely to have air conditioning, well-insulated homes or access to green spaces \u2013 are also at greater risk. In order to keep cool in the heat, people are advised to keep hydrated, avoid the sun when it is strongest, limit strenuous physical activity and wear loose, light-coloured clothing when possible.<\/p>\n

Share<\/a>\"SenaySenay Boztas<\/p>\n

It is a sight normally reserved for snowy winters: this morning, a gritting machine was out in the Dutch city of Hilversum.<\/p>\n

The municipality<\/a> in the Netherlands announced that it would be spreading salt on its roads this week in order to cool down the asphalt and reduce the risk of damage.<\/p>\n

Like the rest of Europe, this normally-temperate country is struggling with extreme heat, with temperatures this week expected<\/a> to hit 38\u00b0C. A \u201cheat protocol\u201d is in force in six provinces, meaning speedy rescue rules for broken down vehicles, while businesses have reported a run on air conditioning machines.<\/p>\n

In Amsterdam, municipal shelters<\/a> have opened in 12 locations to offer respite from the heat \u2013 everywhere from a supermarket to a community farm. A team of energy coaches has been going door-to-door with simple fixes such as stick-on exterior heat shields for windows. Some schools have moved to a \u201ctropical\u201d shorter timetable, and in Assen, in the northeast province of Drenthe, 13 nurseries have closed.<\/p>\n

Last week, Eline Coolen, heat coordinator at the public health institute in Amsterdam went viral with an appeal<\/a> for people to prevent the sun from even reaching their windows, if necessary by draping their curtains outside.<\/p>\n

Share<\/a>Met Office warns temperatures could hit 39C<\/p>\n

The UK Met Office said temperatures could reach a maximum of 39C on Thursday, most likely for somewhere in London or the South East, with higher temperatures \u201cpossible\u201d.<\/p>\n

UK Met Office spokesman Grahame Madge, said: \u201cThe Met Office is flagging 39C as a headline maximum temperature on Thursday, most likely for somewhere in London or the South East.<\/p>\n

\u201cForecast temperature values are indicative and are subject to a slight range either side.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is possible we could see temperatures higher than the 39C if the final values are at the upper end of our narrow range.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is important to remember that the temperature value is only one element of this extreme heatwave story.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe other major factor is the high humidity which for many will make the intense heat even harder to endure.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Updated at\u00a010.11 EDT<\/p>\n

Retailers in the UK are reporting soaring sales of fans, ice cream makers and sun cream as households try to cope with the extreme heat.<\/p>\n

Currys claimed it had seen an almost 1,500% increase in customers searching for fans on its website compared with last weekend, and a 3,500% increase in searches for air conditioning products over the same period.<\/p>\n

Lakeland said sales of electric fans were up by more than 100% on the previous four weeks, while sales of cool bags for transporting food were up 262% and sales of ice cream makers were up by more than 500% on some lines.<\/p>\n

John Lewis said sales of pizza ovens had soared by 557% week on week, while searches on JohnLewis.com for \u201cSilk scarf\u201d were up 200% on last week.<\/p>\n

Tesco is predicting a 60% increase in sales of ice, a 48% increase in sales of ice cream and ice lollies, and a 44% spike in sales of barbecue meat.<\/p>\n

Aldi, which has re-stocked its shelves with its previously sold-out collapsible pet pool and freezable chew toys, is also predicting it will sell one million burgers this week \u2013 a 50% jump on last week.<\/p>\n

It is also preparing for a 30% surge in beer sales and to sell more than 500,000 bottles of its Lacura Sun Cream \u2013 an 80% week-on-week increase.<\/p>\n

Share<\/a>A heatmap of Europe<\/a>A heatmap of EuropeShare<\/a>\"StevenSteven Morris<\/p>\n

Train operators are warning people to travel on Wednesday and Thursday only if it cannot be avoided.<\/p>\n

GWR said: \u201cExtreme heat can cause rails to expand and buckle, so when temperatures reach certain thresholds, trains must run more slowly to keep services safe. This will mean fewer trains and slightly longer journey times during the warmest periods of each day.<\/p>\n

\u201cProlonged high temperatures can also affect equipment on our older regional train fleet, including engines and cooling systems. This means there may be some short-notice changes or cancellations, particularly during the hottest parts of the day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bristol airport has said that several lightning strikes on Tuesday damaged air traffic communications systems, leading to cancellations and diversions.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson said: \u201cAn electrical storm over the airport caused damage to air traffic communications equipment, impacting both primary and backup systems. Engineers were quickly on site and worked to identify and then fix what was found to be complex damage to equipment.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnfortunately, flights had to be cancelled and diverted during this time and we\u2019re sorry to all passengers who suffered disruption caused by the weather event. Early indications are that several lightning strikes caused damage to equipment.\u201d<\/p>\n

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