European countries experienced over 10,000 additional deaths during the unprecedented heat wave that swept through Western Europe in late June, as per official reports. The majority of these deaths, exceeding 9,000, were among individuals aged 65 and older, according to data released by EuroMOMO, a network supported by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and the World Health Organization.
The extreme heat during this period led to fatalities through heat stroke or exacerbating existing cardiovascular and respiratory conditions, with elderly populations being particularly vulnerable. Dr. Lasse Vestergaard, the chief physician at Denmark’s Statens Serum Institut, which hosts EuroMOMO, stated that the significant spike in mortality during this time is unusual and likely attributable to the extreme heat.
Experts have linked the late-June heat wave to human-induced climate change, stating that such extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and severe due to these factors. The data collected from 27 European countries showed excess deaths across all causes during the peak of the heat wave from June 22 to 28 in countries like France, Spain, and the UK. Scientists ruled out other major factors like COVID-19 outbreaks contributing to the substantial increase of 10,650 deaths during that week.
The combined mortality rate in these European nations was notably lower, averaging around 500 deaths per week below usual levels in the eight weeks leading up to the heat wave. The disruption caused by the extreme temperatures included power outages, school closures, and record-breaking temperatures in several countries.
EuroMOMO does not release country-specific excess death figures but highlighted France and Belgium as the two countries with significantly high excess mortality in the final week of June. Belgium saw its highest excess mortality during a heat wave since data collection began in 2000, according to the country’s health institute, Sciensano.
Additionally, a recent study estimated that 2,700 individuals died from heat-related causes in England and Wales alone during the heatwaves in May and June, with 42% of these deaths attributed to the impact of global warming on the severity of the heatwaves, according to research by Imperial College London, the UK Met Office, and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.