A heatwave across Western Europe during the week of June 24, 2026, resulted in record-high temperatures, widespread power outages in France, and public health alerts in several other nations, including the United Kingdom and Italy. According to meteorological agencies, the high temperatures are forecast to extend into Eastern Europe.
In France, a heat-related incident with a power transformer left approximately 68,000 households without electricity in the northwestern department of Finistere on Tuesday, authorities reported. The number of affected customers of the French power network grew to 106,000 by late Tuesday as high temperatures strained infrastructure.
France’s national temperature indicator, an average of daytime and nighttime temperatures recorded at 30 stations, reached 29.8 degrees Celsius (85.64 degrees Fahrenheit) on Tuesday, the highest since measurements began in 1947. Officials issued an orange alert for more than 30 departments, with temperatures forecast to reach between 39°C and 41°C (102.2°F to 105.8°F) in areas from Brittany to Paris.
In the United Kingdom, the Met Office, the country’s national weather service, issued a heat warning for Wednesday and Thursday. Temperatures were forecast to reach as high as 39°C (102.2°F) in London and southern England. In response, hundreds of schools announced plans to close or dismiss students early, and several train services were reduced to mitigate heat-related issues on rail lines.
Italy’s Ministry of Health declared a red heatwave alert, its highest level, for 16 cities on Wednesday, including Milan and Rome.
Meteorological services reported the heatwave is expected to move eastward in the coming days. Poland’s weather service issued high-level heat warnings for the western part of the country from Thursday to Saturday. Croatia’s government issued a red alert for its Adriatic coast for Friday and Saturday. Hungary’s officials announced the country would raise its heat alert to the maximum level from Saturday through the following Tuesday.
Other Western European nations also implemented alerts. The central and southern Netherlands were placed under a code orange for extreme heat, while Belgium issued an orange heat alert for the entire country beginning Thursday.
Spain’s State Meteorological Agency, however, forecast that temperatures would begin to drop in most of the country on Wednesday.
Reports from the Associated Press and Agence France-Presse noted that experts attribute the conditions to atmospheric patterns that trap hot air.
