European heatwave eases after a ferocious start to the week.

The recent heat has been ferocious for western Europe. The UK saw a taste of this in June with two heatwaves resulting in the warmest June on record for England. The UK saw its second warmest June on record and the top temperature for the month was 33.2C. For July, London reached 34.7C on the 1st but in Paris, and the departments just to the south, there were top-level red warnings of heat from Météo France. These targeted everyone, not just vulnerable groups, with advice to stay indoors between the hours of 11am and 9pm, if possible. Belgium, Croatia and Italy also had red warnings for extreme heat with advice to adjust behaviours as temperatures rose through the 30sC.

France

Notable temperatures recorded on Tuesday, July 1st: Nîmes (30) 41.3°C; Toulouse (31) 39.3°C; Le Vigeant (86) 40.0°C; Châteaumeillant (18) 41.2°C; La Brosse-Montceaux (77) 40.1°C; Paris-Montsouris (75) 38.1°C. Meteo France

Paris was forecast to reach 34C on Wednesday 2nd, up to 38C in Lyon and Grenoble. Changes will begin from the northwest and southwest of the country. The northwestern change is linked to the same cold front which passed over the UK, but as it hits the residual heat over France, there are thunderstorm warnings. This heatwave is expected to end Wednesday evening. 

The top floor of the Eiffel Tower closed and a nuclear power station had to temporarily shut down in the heat as did schools. France had already recorded its second hottest June (since records began in 1990). 2023 remains in first place for June heat. 

At the weekend, the south of France will still be hot with temperatures in Nice around 31C with the risk of thunderstorms on Sunday. In Paris, the weather will cool down and become more unsettled at the weekend. Temperatures of 29C for the end of the week but around 23C with blustery winds and rain on Sunday.

Belgium

Belgium also had red heat warnings for the start of July with 34.7C, the hottest 1st July on record for Belgium. There were cancellations and delays on the railways as intense heat can cause expansion of tracks and overhead lines as well as faults in the air conditioning. As the cold front from London and Paris also affects the Low Countries, Belgium has rain and thunderstorms and will see temperatures drop. From the mid-30s down to the mid-20sC. At the weekend, there will be unsettled weather with rain and it will feel cooler, so quite a change coming up if you are visiting Bruges. 

This fresher air flow will reach right across northern Europe by the end of Friday, so quite a change here. 

The heat which affected London at the beginning of this week is being forced eastwards as a cold front pushes in from the northwest. It sweeps from Germany into western Poland and the Baltic States. Also over Prague and Austria with more heat for Croatia with the mid 30sC for Dubrovnik by Saturday. 

“Europe has seen many intense and deadly summer heatwaves with thousands of excess heat-related deaths. "WMO

Spain

The warmest June on record, surpassing the normal average even for July or August. ‘Most anomalously warm month in the historical series’ AEMET recorded a temperature of 46.0°C at the weekend in southwest Spain. Portugal recorded a new June record with 46.6C. 

Other records - Barcelona Fabra 37.9C, stands out for the length of its data series, which spans more than a century. Barcelona Airport 25.8C and Tarifa 25.2C experienced a torrid night (minimum equal to or greater than 25°C) for the first time in June. There have been issues with wildfires in the heat

July began with very high temperatures in most of Spain. Temperatures reached 43 °C again in areas of Andalusia and Extremadura. 41C in Cordoba forecast for Wednesday in the south.

EFFIS wildfire monitoring for 7 days

Portugal, Italy, Switzerland and Greece have also been gripped by intense heat. Germany reached 37.8C earlier this week with a minimum of 23.3C, so well over our Tropical Night value of 20C.

Italy

In Italy, two construction workers were rushed to the hospital in the heat on Tuesday, as other outdoor workers were told to head inside. Florence saw power outages due to a peak in air conditioning and underground cables overheating.

Venice has been hot in the low 30s and this weekend will be sunny at 30C but down a little for next week as will Pisa. Rome has been hotter at 37C but will also ease down next week.

Outlook

There are signs that the hot air could surge from Spain back through France at the end of the next week, around the 11th July and by the end of the weekend reaching England. Not only have there been these surges of hot air from North Africa and Iberia, but there have also been clear skies and relentless sunshine. 

“As a result of human-induced climate change, extreme heat is becoming more frequent and intense” WMO

"Often it is the same weather pattern, a high pressure keeping the setup steady with slowly descending air, clear skies and strong sunshine with more and ore solar radiation each day. A hot flow of air from Africa may add ot the set up but the daily heating with little relief by night is key. The Mediterranean is also very warm at the moment,” WMO

Marine heatwave intensity categories for 5 July, 2025. European zone. Credit: Mercator Ocean International  

If you are travelling to mainland Europe and the temperatures are high for several days, do adjust your routine. These are not just warm summer days. Heat stress is a significant health concern, which is why the national meteorological agencies warn about it. Meteo Alarm shows a summary of the national weather warnings across Europe for Day1 and Day2. It is a quick and easy way to check and find out the source of official advice. 

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Sixth Assessment Report shows how the frequency and intensity of extreme heat events are increasing in Europe.  

“By 2050, about half of the European population may be exposed to high or very high risk of heat stress during summer, particularly in Southern Europe and increasingly in Eastern Europe and Western and Central Europe”