The UK’s record high for June has gone even higher, with parts of southern England reading 35.8C.
Less than an hour earlier, it was believed that Surrey had recorded the hottest June day ever with a temperature of 35.7C, but Wiggonholt in West Sussex has just beat it, PA reports.
The previous record high was 35.6C in Southampton, during the much-remembered 1976 heatwave.
Key events
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UK breaks all-time June temperature record
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‘We’re considering moving to another city’
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Red weather alert extended to 72 of France’s 96 mainland departments
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‘I have spent €250 in three days just because of the heat’
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Scotland records hottest day of the year
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Spain breaks June heat record this week
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If you child’s school is open, keep sending kids in, education secretary says
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How is the extreme heatwave affecting you? Let us know.
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Heatwave hits Europe with temperatures well above 30C – in pictures
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Remember to stay hydrated
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Next UK PM needs to ‘stay the court’ on climate policies to reduce fossil fuels dependence, campaigners say
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French city of Nantes reporting temperatures above 40C
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Look after your pets, change their routines to protect them in heat, charities say
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94 million Europeans to experience temperatures above 35C today, AFP estimates show
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‘I don’t get paid if I don’t work’
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‘I know what the weather should be like in Paris, and it is not this’
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‘It’s dangerous’: how UK schools, care homes and other workplaces are coping in soaring heat
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Red alert for 16 cities in Italy as extreme temperatures expected today
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‘The heat was at a different level’
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Lib Dems urge government to open ‘cool hubs’ to help vulnerable people at UK braces for extreme heat
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Europe heatwave ‘putting people’s health at risk,’ WHO chief warns
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Europe battles record-breaking heat: is this the new normal? – The Latest
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Heat-related incident leaves 68,000 households with no electricity in northern France
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Rare red heat warning kicks in the UK with temperatures expected to get near 40C
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UK June record to get ‘absolutely smashed’, BBC forecaster predicts
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UK train delays and disruptions
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Power outages in France
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Opening summary
UK breaks all-time June temperature record
The UK has recorded the hottest June day ever with 35.7C in Surrey, BBC reported.
It beats the previous record of 35.6C in Southampton, during the much-remembered 1976 heatwave.
‘We’re considering moving to another city’
Alfie Packham
Daria, 28, has left Paris to stay with her partner’s parents for a few days to avoid the stifling heat in their top floor apartment.
“My partner, our cat and I live in a typical Parisian apartment right under the building’s roof,” she says. “Many roofs in the city are made of zinc, which is gorgeous, but unsustainable. Top-floor apartments are absolutely sizzling in this weather.”
The main reason they have left Paris is for the sake of their cat, Kopeck, she says.
“Last year, during a shorter but intense heatwave, our cat overheated so much she had to put out her tongue and panted, sort of like a puppy, just to cool down. After she threw up for the first time ever, when the heatwave started, we decided staying in our apartment was not sustainable.”
Kopeck is faring better now. “She likes to be in the sink. She asks for water by licking the tap.”
Daria worries about living in Paris in the long term as the temperature rises.
“We’re considering moving to another city because Paris is just not sustainable in the long run with this kind of weather. But moving means changing workplaces, which is complicated.”
She adds: “The only silver lining is that this sort of thing brings people together. There is a women-only Facebook group I am part of where we have started a list of air-conditioned places all around the city.”
Red weather alert extended to 72 of France’s 96 mainland departments
A red extreme weather alert for France has been extended to 72 out of 96 French mainland departments tomorrow.
That’s three-quarters of the country, as per this map.
17 further areas will be on an orange alert.
Temperatures are “exceptionally high, both day and night, across the many departments under red alert,” Météo-France said.
‘I have spent €250 in three days just because of the heat’
Nicola Slawson
Anna, a 50-year-old freelance translator living in Nantes, says the heatwave has forced her to abandon working from home and rent a co-working space in a local hotel with air conditioning.
“We’ve had temperatures over 40C for three days in a row, which never happened before,” she says. “It’s impossible to work where I live.
After struggling through an earlier heatwave in May, Anna drew up a list of air-conditioned co-working spaces she could use in future.
“It was too much. It was too difficult. Your brain is not working properly in that heat and I need my brain. That’s what I work with.”
Because there is no air conditioning on local public transport, Anna has been relying on taxis to travel between home, work and medical appointments.
“In three days I’ve spent around €250 on heat-related expenses,” she says. “If it were not for the heatwave, I wouldn’t have paid any of those costs.”
Anna, who has a chronic health condition and is due to spend a night in hospital this week, is particularly concerned about the lack of air conditioning in healthcare settings.
“There is no air conditioning in the university hospital apart from the operating theatres,” she says. “They can give you a fan, but at 40C outside it’s not going to cut it.”
Scotland records hottest day of the year
Scotland has recorded its hottest day of the year, with temperatures reaching a high of 29.4C at Dyce in Aberdeen on Tuesday, PA reports.
Temperatures at Fyvie Castle in Aberdeenshire hit a high of 29C on the same day and reached 28.7C at Aboyne in Aberdeenshire, Leuchars in Fife and Edinburgh.
Spain breaks June heat record this week
National weather agency AEMET on Wednesday said that mainland Spain recorded its highest daily average temperatures in June since at least 1950, AFP reports.
Though temperatures are expected to drop in most of the country today, parts of the Basque country in the north will still be marked red. Temperatures were expected to hit 39.3C in Bilbao today.
A London School of Economics event on extreme heat has been cancelled – because of the extreme heat.
“We regret that this event has been cancelled due to the red extreme heat warning issued by the UK Met Office,” the event page reads.
If you child’s school is open, keep sending kids in, education secretary says
Sally Weale
Education correspondent
Hundreds of schools in England have closed or are closing early due to the heat this week, but the education secretary has urged parents to continue sending their children to school if it is open.
As the UK continued to swelter in heatwave conditions, Bridget Phillipson reminded parents about the cost of missed lessons and school absence, which the government has been grappling with since Covid.
She said: “I know hot weather can be a struggle. But my message to families is simple: if your child’s school is open, you should keep sending them into school.”
“Teachers are relaxing uniform rules, keeping classrooms cool, making sure children are hydrated, teaching critical skills like water safety, and avoiding vigorous activity on the hottest days.
If your child has medical needs which mean you’re especially worried about the heat, talk to your school about what they can do.
Every day of absence and lesson missed has a cost – and that cost falls hardest on our most disadvantaged pupils and working class communities. So, pack a water bottle, put on the sunscreen, and trust that your child’s school has got this.”
How is the extreme heatwave affecting you? Let us know.
As we go into later afternoon on the continent, Nantes and Bordeaux are now both in the 40s. Paris is reporting 39C, as is Toulouse.
It’s 34C in London.
This is not normal.
Let us know how you are coping with the extreme weather and how is it affecting you.
Heatwave hits Europe with temperatures well above 30C – in pictures
Remember to stay hydrated
In these extreme temperatures, please do remember to stay hydrated.
Here is Pope Leo leading by example and drinking a glass of water at the end of his weekly general audience.
Next UK PM needs to ‘stay the court’ on climate policies to reduce fossil fuels dependence, campaigners say
Over in the UK, as the country faces breaking temperature records for June that have stood for 50 years since the summer of 1976, campaigners have called for the next Prime Minister to “stay the course” on climate policies, PA reported.
Greenpeace UK’s political campaigner Angharad Hopkinson said:
“The summer of ’76 may be seared into the nation’s memory, but it’s quickly being overtaken by even more terrifying heatwaves.
The only way off this hellish treadmill is to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.
Our next prime minister needs to act on the evidence outside their window and the advice of their scientific advisors and stay the course on climate policies.”
A heatwave sweeping western Europe reduced France’s nuclear output on Wednesday as high temperatures across the country reduced access to water needed to cool reactors, Reuters reported.
Output was reduced by 4.1 gigawatts, or 7%, of total power demand at midday, data from French utility EDF showed.
French city of Nantes reporting temperatures above 40C
The French city of Nantes is currently one of the – if not the – hottest places in Europe, reporting 41C.
It’s 39.3C in Bordeaux and Bilbao across the border in Spain, 37C in Toulouse, and 37C in Paris.
German city of Stuttgart is reporting above 33C, as is the British capital, London.
