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France, UK and Spain see record temperatures as heatwave grips western Europe

Alys Daviesand
Olivia Ireland
News imageReuters Three tourists with umbrellas walking in front of the Pyramid of the Louvre museumReuters
Tourists with umbrellas outside the Pyramid of the Louvre museum as it closes early due to the heatwave

A heatwave gripping western Europe has led to a series of unprecedented temperature highs, with France experiencing its hottest day ever, the UK seeing record heat for June and Spain reaching its highest daily average since 1950.

Tens of millions of people are grappling with punishing temperatures, which hit almost 41C in Paris and have led to red heat alerts across swathes of the continent.

France's national temperature indicator - an average of day and night temperatures across dozens of locations - hit 30C on Wednesday, the hottest day since records began in 1947.

More than half the country remains under a red heat alert, with tens of thousands of homes in the west without power.

News imageMap of France and northern Spain showing high temperatures recorded in selected cities on Wednesday 24 June 2026. Labels indicate Paris 39.6°C, La Rochelle 41.3°C, Bordeaux 42°C, Bilbao 42.5°C, and Santander 38.5°C. Source: BBC Weather.

Climate change is driving up temperatures around the world - but particularly in Europe. It is the fastest warming continent, heating up twice as fast as the global average, according to the Copernicus climate service.

This is causing increased summer heatwaves, greater pressure on Europe's water supply, and more intense wildfires.

Météo-France recorded provisional maximum temperatures across France that "remained relatively stable compared to the previous day".

Highs ranged from 39C to 43C across much of western France, with with 43C recorded in the Poitou-Charentes-Val de Loire region, slightly lower than the 44.3C seen in Pissos on Tuesday.

News imageMap of France showing heatwave alert levels valid until 24 June 2026. Most of the country, including Paris and Nantes, is shaded dark red for “exceptionally high heat.” Eastern regions around Lyon are orange for “very high heat,” while parts of the far south and Mediterranean coast near Marseille are yellow for “high heat.” A legend at the top explains the colour coding, and major cities are marked and labelled. Source: Météo France, BBC.

The intense heat saw two of Paris's landmarks - the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower - close earlier than usual.

A spokesperson for the Louvre said the building was "not sufficiently adapted to climate change".

At least 40 people drowned in heatwave-related incidents in France since Thursday, including a six-year-old at a beach in Bègles, Gironde.

Authorities have also warned the risk of forest fires is higher during intense heat.

In the Maine-et-Loire region, more than 150 firefighters were deployed on Tuesday to fight a major fire in the Breignon forest in Saint-Macaire-du-Bois. It was brought under control overnight, officials said.

Labour minister Jean-Pierre Farandou said France is "in the process of finding out we've become a hot country" and warned society may need to adapt.

Some relief from the heat is expected from Friday, with temperatures expected to gradually drop.

The heatwavespread to other parts of western Europe on Wednesday, with a rare red heat alert extended in parts of the UK.

The UK saw its hottest June day on record in Gosport, Hampshire, on Wednesday afternoon after temperatures soared to 36.1C (97F). Temperatures could hit 38C on Thursday, forecasters say.

Spain also experienced baking heat over the last few days, with its weather agency reporting that the daily average temperature on Monday was 28.08C and 28.17C on Tuesday - the highest ever recorded for June.

Red heat alerts remain in place for parts of northern Spain, with a maximum temperature of 42C possible in parts of the Basque country, forecaster Aemet said.

In Italy, there are 16 red alerts in place, mostly northern and central parts of the country.

News imageMap of Italy showing city-level heat alerts for the next two days. Most of northern and central Italy - including Turin, Milan, Venice, Bologna and Florence - are marked in red, indicating emergency heatwave conditions. Additional red markers extend down much of the peninsula, showing widespread severe heat inland and along both coasts. A few coastal areas, including parts of the north-west and southern mainland, have orange markers for high heat risk. Southern regions and the islands—such as areas around Naples, Sicily and Sardinia including Palermo-mostly show yellow markers, indicating a lower but still likely health risk. The source is the Italian Ministry of Health (24 June 2026).

Temperatures are expected to peak in Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium nearer the weekend.

The heatwave will also extend to eastern Europe over the next few days, with severe heat warnings issued for countries including Poland, Croatia and Hungary for later in the week.

Germany has also reported several drownings, including a 26-year-old man who died after going into the Danube River near Regensburg in Bavaria on Tuesday evening.

There are also fears of drought in some regions. In Brandenburg, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia, authorities are urging people to use water sparingly, German newspaper Die Welt reports.

Barbecue bans have also been introduced in cities including Stuttgart and Freiburg in Baden-Württemberg, local media report.

News imageMaps of Europe showing how temperatures changed from average during May 2026. The left panel (11–19 May) is dominated by light to dark blue shading across most regions, indicating temperatures generally 2°C to 8°C below the 1991–2020 average, especially in western and central Europe. The right panel (21–30 May) switches to widespread light to dark red shading, showing temperatures 2°C to 8°C above average across much of the continent, with the strongest warmth in France, the UK, Spain and central Europe. A horizontal colour bar ranges from −8°C (dark blue) to +8°C (dark red). Captions below note that conditions shifted from cooler than average to hotter than average within two weeks, illustrating a rapid transition into heatwave conditions.

The Dutch weather service, the KNMI, has issued a Code Orange weather alert, which refers to a "high chance of dangerous weather" in southern and central areas of the Netherlands from Wednesday until at least Friday.

KNMI said maximum temperatures of 37C were expected, while Friday could see the mercury hit 39C.

Most of Belgium is under an orange alert, with highs of 37C expected over the next few days.