Western Europe heatwave News

Hottest Ever April Recorded in Spain, Portugal as Heat Wave Hits Europe

Spain and Portugal recorded their hottest April on record as a mass of hot air brought temperatures above 30C and close to 40C in some areas at the end of the month. Last month was the fourth-hottest month of April …

Record Heat and Drought Force Europe to Accelerate Climate Adaptation

The record heat and drought hurting European farmers, power utilities and insurers foreshadows even faster change to the continent’s climate, with scientists warning that feedback loops from a drying Earth likely will lead to dangerously high temperatures again this year. …

Long-Term Drought in Spain Expected to Bring More Heatwaves, Wildfires

MADRID (AP) – Spain has officially entered a period of long-term drought, owing to high temperatures and low rainfall over the past three years, and likely faces another year of heatwaves and forest fires. The country’s Aemet weather agency said …

France’s Hottest Year Was Also 2nd Driest, Putting Climate Pressure on Government

France experienced its hottest and second-driest year on record in 2022, putting pressure on the government to step up its fight against climate change that’s straining everything from energy to agriculture. Temperatures averaged 14.5 Celsius last year, the highest since …

2022 Will Be UK’s Warmest Year on Record: Met Office

This year will be the warmest year on record for the UK, according to the Met Office. The annual average temperature across Britain exceeded the previous high set in 2014, when the average was 9.88C, provisional data from the national …

Rhine River Water Level Hits New Low, Forcing Some Barges to Halt Transport

The Rhine River’s water level at a key waypoint hit a new low, risking the transit of fuel and other goods as Europe’s climate crisis exacerbates its energy-supply crunch. The marker at Kaub, a particularly shallow point west of Frankfurt, …

Historic Drought, Low River Levels Threaten to Cripple Trade Across Europe

In the midst of an arid summer that set heat records across Europe, the continent’s rivers are evaporating. The Rhine — a pillar of the German, Dutch and Swiss economies for centuries — is set to become virtually impassable at …

England Records Driest July Since 1935 Amid Searing Heat Wave

England had the driest July since 1935 amid a searing heat wave that pushed infrastructure to the brink and severely disrupted travel. The unusually dry weather came as temperatures rose above 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) for the first time. …

Climate Change Made Deadly UK Heat Wave at Least 10 Times More Likely: Study

The UK’s heat wave earlier this month fueled so many blazes in London that the city’s fire service was busier than any day since Nazi attacks in World War II. More than 840 people may have died in England and …

Alpine Glaciers Decline at Record Rates Following Heatwaves

MORTERATSCH GLACIER, Switzerland – From the way 45-year-old Swiss glaciologist Andreas Linsbauer bounds over icy crevasses, you would never guess he was carrying 10 kg of steel equipment needed to chart the decline of Switzerland’s glaciers. Normally, he heads down …