23/06/2026 21:11 - Internacionales
Europe is suffering through an unprecedented heatwave that has shattered temperature records across the continent in mid-June—weeks before the hottest time of year. The continent is warming at a rate two to three times faster than the global average, and its infrastructure simply isn't built for these extremes.
Experts have described this as "the foothills of an absolute catastrophe," according to Hugh Montgomery, professor of intensive care medicine at University College London, cited by CNN on June 23, 2026.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| National average temperature record | 29.8°C (beating 2019 record) |
| Highest local temperature | 43.9°C |
| Drowning deaths | 40 (since June 18, 2026) |
| Heat-related deaths | 3 elderly adults + 2 children |
| Schools closed | More than 800 |
| Departments on red alert | 54 of 96 |
France recorded its hottest day in history with a national average temperature of 29.8°C, surpassing the previous record from 2019, according to provisional data from Météo-France. Some towns reached temperatures above 43.9°C (111°F).
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu announced that 40 people have drowned since June 18, 2026, as people desperately sought relief in rivers, lakes, and swimming pools. Additionally, three elderly people died from the heat near Bordeaux, and two children aged two and four were found dead inside a hot car in southern France.
The UK Met Office issued a rare red alert for extreme heat—a warning that indicates danger to life. Temperatures are forecast to exceed 37.8°C (100°F), potentially beating the June record of 35.6°C from 1976 by up to 3.3 degrees.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres remarked that London is "cooking" during the London Climate Week. Hundreds of schools have closed or switched to half-day schedules, and residents have been warned to avoid train travel.
Why is this so unusual? The UK has a temperate maritime climate, and homes are typically built to retain heat, not dissipate it. Air conditioning is rare in British households.
Temperatures exceeded 45°C (113°F) in Andújar, a municipality in southern Spain, according to the AEMET weather service. Nearly the entire country was under heat alerts, with temperatures reaching 40-42°C in the oriental Cantabrian region and major river valleys.
Italy has declared a Level 3 red alert (the highest) for 8 cities: Bologna, Bolzano, Brescia, Florence, Milan, Perugia, Rieti, and Turin. Level 3 indicates health risks even for healthy, young people.
Two main factors are driving this crisis:
A massive area of high pressure parked over Europe, acting like a lid that traps hot air beneath it.
Global warming—driven by burning oil, coal, and gas—is making these events more frequent and more intense.
"There is a sad inevitability to all this," stated Friederike Otto, professor of climate science at Imperial College London. "Yes, it's climate change, yes, it's us, no, it's not El Niño."
One of the main reasons for the severity of this crisis is that only 20% of European homes have air conditioning. Historically, the continent had less need for artificial cooling because extreme heat was uncommon. In Northern Europe, many buildings were designed to retain heat, not release it.
"When nights stay hot, heat accumulates in the structure day after day. Conditions inside steadily worsen, and the body never recovers," explained Timur Dogan, associate professor of architecture at Cornell University.
Météo-France compares this event to the August 2003 heatwave that killed 15,000 people in France alone. The World Health Organization reports that more than 200,000 people have died from extreme heat in Europe over the past four years.
Currently, 26 countries from Ireland to Greece are experiencing temperatures above 40°C (104°F).
"No place is truly prepared for what climate change will bring," warned Peter Thorne, director of the ICARUS Climate Research Centre at Maynooth University in Ireland. "We developed everything for a stable climate that we are rapidly saying goodbye to."
Scientists caution that this heatwave is just the beginning of an extreme summer. "There is enormous consensus that the next three months will be abnormally warm," Thorne indicated.
CNN en Español, Météo-France, UK Met Office, AEMET, verified prior knowledge.
Alfredo S. Quiroga
