Europe Records Over 10,000 Excess Deaths During Extreme June Heatwave

Europe experienced an extreme heatwave at the end of June that broke temperature records across the continent and resulted in more than 10,000 excess deaths, according to new data from EuroMOMO, a mortality monitoring network supported by the World Health Organization. The data, published between Sunday and Monday, covers 27 European countries and shows that the majority of these deaths occurred during the week of June 22 to 28, when the heatwave peaked in France, Spain, the UK, and other nations.

Lars Vestergaard, an expert at the Danish institute hosting EuroMOMO, told Reuters that such a high level of excess mortality is unusual for this time of year and is difficult to attribute to any cause other than the extreme heat. More than 9,000 of the excess deaths were among people aged 65 and older, a demographic particularly vulnerable to heat-related illnesses such as heat stroke and exacerbations of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases.

The heatwave disrupted electricity supplies, forced school closures, and shattered temperature records in several countries, with France and Belgium experiencing the highest excess mortality rates. No other unusual factors were identified during the period, underscoring the heatwave's direct impact on public health across Europe.