European Heatwave Caused Over 10,000 Excess Deaths, Data Shows

European countries registered more than 10,000 excess deaths during the intense heatwave that gripped the continent in late June, according to official data. The vast majority of these fatalities, over 9,000, were among individuals aged 65 and older.

Lasse Vestergaard, Chief Physician at Denmark's Statens Serum Institut, which hosts the EuroMOMO network, described the excess mortality as unusual for that time of year. "It is difficult to explain this high excess mortality by anything but the extreme heat," Vestergaard told Reuters. Scientists have linked the late-June heatwave to human-caused climate change, which is increasing the frequency and intensity of such events.

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To have this kind of excess at this time of year is unusual. It’s really high.

The data, compiled from national mortality statistics across 27 European nations, covers excess deaths from all causes during the week of June 22 to 28, when the heatwave peaked in countries including France, Spain, and Britain. Researchers noted that major contributing factors like COVID-19 outbreaks were not significant enough to explain the spike.

While EuroMOMO does not provide country-specific figures, it highlighted France and Belgium as experiencing "very high excess" mortality during the final week of June. Belgium's public health institute, Sciensano, reported that the country's excess mortality during this heatwave was the highest recorded since 2000. Separately, a study estimated that heat-related causes accounted for 2,700 deaths in England and Wales during the May and June heatwaves, with 42% of those deaths attributed to the extra heat from global warming.

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It is difficult to explain this high excess mortality by anything but the extreme heat.