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Western Europe is bucking under extreme heat and raging wildfires. Here's what you need to know
Scorching temperatures are sweeping western Europe, with the UK setting an all-time heat record, wildfires raging in France and Spain and a worsening drought in Portugal. At the same time, millions of Americans will see temperatures above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.7 degrees Celsius) this week.
If you're just reading in, here's what you need to know:
Record-breaking temperatures plague parts of Europe:
The UK has recorded a temperature of 40.3 degrees Celsius (104.54 degrees Fahrenheit) in Lincolnshire, England, according to the Met Office said, provisionally shredding its previous record of 38.7 degrees Celsius (101 degrees Fahrenheit).
Germany is bracing for temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in some regions on Tuesday and Wednesday. The extreme high temperatures will cause drought and dryness in some areas across Germany and the risk of wildfires remains very high, experts say.
Belgium extended a "code red" weather warning to a third region of the country. "There is a sufficient chance that at least 25% of the province will reach 40 degrees," said the head of forecasting at a Belgian meteorological institute.
A French town of Cazaux recorded 42.4 degrees Celsius (108.3 degrees Fahrenheit) on Monday — the hottest it has seen since its weather station first opened more than 100 years ago in 1921 — according to French national meteorological service Météo France.
Sweden issued on Tuesday an orange warning for extremely high temperatures of around 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) in the southern part of the country for Wednesday and Thursday.
Hundreds have died in Portugal, where sweltering temperatures exacerbate a severe drought with the health ministry saying at least 659 mainly elderly people had died in the previous seven days, Reuters reported.
Meanwhile in the US, around a third of the population is under a heat alert on Tuesday and Wednesday as dangerous heat peaks today and tomorrow over much of the country. Nearly 20% of the US population, or about 60 million people, will likely see a temperature at or above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.7 degrees Celsius) this week. Among the hardest-hit areas are in the Southern Plains, including Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas, where intense heat will stick around until at least Tuesday.
Fires are raging with the risk of spreading further:
"Very Extreme Danger" of fire – the highest level of risk on the Fire Weather Index (FWI) scale – is forecast in Spain, France, Italy and the United Kingdom on Tuesday, according to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS).
A third wildfire broke out in the Gironde region of western France, prompting the evacuation of 500 more people, according to the prefecture of Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Gironde. A total of 19,300 hectares (more than 47,000 acres) had already been burned by the two other fires in the Gironde. In total, 37,000 people have been evacuated.
In Spain, wildfires swept the central region of Castile and Léon, as well as the northern region of Galicia Sunday, Reuters reported.
At least two people have died and about 8,000 people have been evacuated so far as wildfires scorch areas across Spain, according to a government spokesperson. More than 70,000 hectares (more than 172,000 acres) have been destroyed in Spain because of fires this year, authorities say.
The London Fire Brigade has declared a "major incident" as firefighters battle several "significant" fires across the British capital on Tuesday during the record-breaking heat wave, it said in a tweet. It comes as around 100 firefighters and 15 fire teams are dealing with fires in an open green in Wennington, outside London, the Fire Brigade said on Twitter.
Severe weather is also disrupting travel:
On Monday, one of the UK's largest airports suspended flights after high temperatures damaged a runway.
The Royal Air Force also paused all flights to and from Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, its biggest air base, after a report from Sky News suggested part of the runway had "melted."
Also in London, commuters have been told not to use the city's transportation services unless for "essential journeys" the Transport for London chief operating officer Andy Lord advised.
Network Rail, which owns and operates Britain's railway, has asked people not to travel on Tuesday due to the extreme heat.
Spain has also suspended train services in the country's northwest between Madrid and Galicia due to a fire close to the tracks, according to state-owned rail company RENFE.
The impact of climate change:
These temperatures are astonishing in the UK because they don’t reach this level often, and while they’re not as surprising in Spain, Portugal, and France, they are becoming more frequent and longer even in parts of Europe accustomed to dealing with heat.
Human-induced climate change is, in general, making the world hotter, extreme heat more likely and heatwaves more painfully long. Scientists in the business of attributing the role of the climate crisis to extreme weather now say it can be assumed that any heatwave has been made worse by climate change, primarily caused by humans burning fossil fuels.
Fire official: Heat wave-related incidents "probably never seen on this scale" before in London
Record-setting temperatures in the United Kingdom are also creating weather-related incidents probably never before seen on this scale, according to London Fire Brigade Assistant Commissioner Jonathan Smith.
London has “probably never seen weather related incidents, particularly to do with heat, on this scale before,” he said.
Speaking on Sky News on Tuesday, Smith said that the service is dealing with “a number of significant and major incidents from grassland fires to significant property fires.”
“The ground is tinder box dry, so any small spark is then going to cause the potential for significant fire,” he continued.
“We do have rehearsed and practiced plans in place to be able to make sure that we’re prioritizing our resources,” Smith added.
Earlier on Tuesday, London’s Fire Commissioner had called for "an urgent barbecue ban" as firefighters continue to feel the effects of unprecedented heatwave temperatures for a second day.
Large wildfire on the outskirts of Athens prompts evacuation of some residents
A large wildfire has broken out on the slopes of Mount Penteli in Greece, near residential areas in the northern outskirts of Athens.
The fire that started after 5 p.m. local time burning through low vegetation expanded quickly and is still not under control and has prompted authorities to order residents of at least four residential areas to evacuate for safety reasons.
Greek Fire Service spokesperson Ioannis Artopoios said that 78 firefighters with 22 fire engines, 11 aircraft and five helicopters are battling the fire.
At least 28 Romanian firefighters are also assisting to take out the fire.
Artopoios told Greek Public Broadcaster ERT that the fire is “difficult” adding that “we are doing our best to contain it.”
Scotland records new maximum temperature
Scotland has seen a new provisional record temperature, after 34.8 degrees Celsius (94.6 degrees Fahrenheit) was recorded in Charterhall in the Scottish Borders on Tuesday, according to the Met Office.
The previous record of 32.9 degrees Celsius (91.2 degrees Fahrenheit) was recorded in Greycrook, in the Scottish Borders, on August 9, 2003.
These 3 things are making record-high temperatures possible in the UK, according scientists
Temperatures in the UK exceeded 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) for the first time on Tuesday, making it the country's hottest day on record.
Prior to 2019, the UK had only seen a city exceed 37.8 degrees Celsius (100 degrees Fahrenheit) one time in August 2003.
Since then, it has happened four times in four years. So what was before thought of as impossible, or maybe a one-in-100-year heat event, is now happening almost annually.
Stephen Belcher, the UK Met Office's chief scientist, and Professor Paul Davies, the Met Office's chief meteorologist, said there are three things that are making these conditions possible.
The first is a so-called "wavenumber 5 pattern," Belcher, Davies and the Met Office said in a blog post on Tuesday. The wavenumber 5 pattern describes "the difference in surface temperature from their average values." It shows that there is a wave-like pattern around the Northern Hemisphere with five regions of high-pressure, they explained, adding that these are the places likely to experience heat waves. The wavenumber 5 pattern also explains why it's possible to have concurrent heat waves around the world, Met Office scientists said.
The Met Office says climate change, the second factor, also plays a role. Belcher and Davies wrote in the blog post that temperatures in the UK are "unprecedented in recorded history."
The third factor that is contributing to the extreme heat is environmental and soil conditions, Belcher and Davies said.
"It has been a dry year over many parts of England. When the sun shines on the ground, dry soils cannot release energy through evaporation of moisture, which means that more of the sun’s energy goes into heating the air, further amplifying the temperatures in the UK," the blog said, adding that climate scientists call this the soil moisture feedback.
The consequences: The UK is woefully unprepared for the impacts of the climate crisis. It struggles to manage floods when they occur. In the heat, the nation buckles.
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