UK Hits 36.4C June Record as Europe Heat Deaths Mount
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- The Met Office confirmed 36.4C at Yeovilton, Somerset on Thursday, provisionally the UK's hottest June day ever, beating Wednesday's record of 36.1C, with deputy chief meteorologist Greg Wolverson warning it could be exceeded again Friday before a gradual weekend easing.
- France's main energy provider shut down two nuclear reactors on Thursday as an environmental measure to avoid discharging overheated water into rivers already warming during the record-breaking heatwave, AFP reported.
- Spain recorded 212 premature deaths over four days from the heatwave according to scientists using a mortality monitoring system, while Italy reported five deaths in under 24 hours, including a 57-year-old who collapsed working in a field near Milan, and a 3-year-old died in France after being trapped in a parked car.
- London Ambulance Service responded to 642 Category 1 life-threatening calls on Wednesday — its highest ever single-day total — with officials directly linking the surge in fainting, breathing difficulties, and heart problems to the extreme heat.
- Hospitals in England declared critical incidents as radiotherapy machines, MRI scanners, cooling units, and IT systems failed in the heat, with one ward hitting 35C and A&Es experiencing severe overcrowding, according to the Guardian's health editor.
- France closed 3,500 schools deemed dangerously hot and reduced hours at 10,000 more as classroom temperatures hit 40C, prompting several teaching unions to jointly denounce the government's "blatant lack of preparation" and urge strike action.
- The Netherlands issued its first-ever national red alert for heat, while Switzerland logged its hottest June temperature ever at 38C in Basel, breaking an 80-year-old record, and Deutsche Bahn offered free cancellations for weekend rail tickets booked before 23 June.
Why it matters: The heatwave is simultaneously straining public health systems, energy infrastructure, and education across at least eight countries, with 212 confirmed premature deaths in Spain alone in four days and UK hospitals declaring critical incidents as life-saving equipment fails. France's nuclear shutdowns highlight how warming rivers are directly constraining electricity generation, suggesting grid reliability in extreme heat is becoming a systemic vulnerability rather than an isolated risk.
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