Europe Heatwave Shatters May Temperature Records | WION Climate Tracker

Ajouté : 2026-05-27

[00:00:00]Meanwhile, an intensifying early season heatwave is sweeping across Europe, smashing temperature records, triggering health alerts, and forcing thousands to seek relief from the dangerous heat, stretching from Britain to Italy.

[00:00:12]Now, France recorded its hottest May day earlier this week with officials confirming seven deaths linked directly or indirectly to the heatwave. After temperatures surged far above seasonal norms, authorities urged residents to take precautions. At least seven people have died so far.

[00:00:30]Malheureusement, Unfortunately, this year it's coming very early, and we had very cool temperatures last week. The rise in temperature is very sudden. Your body gets tired.

[00:00:43]Well, Britain also shattered records for a second consecutive day. Four teenagers drowned in lakes and reservoirs as crowds rushed to waterways during the heatwave. Temperatures reached 35° C at London's Kew Gardens and Heathrow Airport, surpassing records set just 24 hours earlier and breaking a May benchmark that has stood for over 100 years.

[00:01:06]It's quite intense cuz it's a little early for it to be this hot. Um but it feels so different. I'm from the States originally. It feels really different even this temperature in [clears throat] in like New York versus in London. It feels much hotter here even when the temperature is the same.

[00:01:22]Well, temperatures climbed towards 35° C in major urban centers in Italy as well, prompting authorities to activate orange heat alerts across several cities, particularly in Tuscany and Umbria.

[00:01:34]Meanwhile, Portugal's beaches filled with residents and tourists seeking relief as temperatures approach 36° C around Lisbon.

[00:01:41]Health officials warned vulnerable groups must avoid prolonged exposure outdoors.

[00:01:46]And Germany also sweltered under unusually hot conditions. With temperatures hovering near 30° C, crowds packed lakes near Cologne while outdoor workers described the working conditions as brutal. Listen to this.

[00:02:02]The biggest challenge is that the tools get really hot. Take a crowbar like this lying in the sun, it's almost impossible to hold. Then of course there's the sun beating down on you, so you have to drink plenty of fluids. You really have to make sure you don't forget that every now and then, otherwise you'll end up wondering why you've got a headache.

[00:02:20]Those are the biggest challenges on days like this.

[00:02:24]Construction workers working on these Lewak's capital city also continue to toil under the sun wearing heavy clothing that offered little respite from the heat. Meteorologists say that the heatwave is being driven by a powerful heat dome, which is a high pressure system trapping hot air from North Africa over Western Europe.

[00:02:42]Climate scientists warn that Europe is warming faster than any other continent and according to the EU's Copernicus climate change service, Europe is now around 2.4 degrees warmer than pre-industrial levels compared to the global average of roughly 1.4 degrees Celsius.

[00:03:00]More frequent and hotter heatwaves, earlier heatwaves and all the challenges that they bring not just for human beings but other life forms, birds, animals, the crops that we depend on.

[00:03:11]These were things that climatologists decades ago were warning would happen with climate change into the future.

[00:03:18]Here in baking Paris, that future is now.

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