Europe's Late-June Heatwave Linked to Over 10,000 Excess Deaths, Data Shows

A severe heatwave that swept across Western Europe in late June was associated with more than 10,000 excess deaths, with the vast majority occurring among the elderly, according to data from a European public health monitoring agency.

The Mortality Data

Official statistics from EuroMOMO, a network supported by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and the World Health Organization, showed 10,650 excess deaths from all causes during the week of June 22 to 28. This period coincided with the peak of the extreme heat in countries including France, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

• The data, pooled from 27 European nations, indicated that over 9,000 of these excess deaths were among individuals aged 65 and above.
• Health experts note that extreme heat can be fatal by causing heat stroke or by exacerbating pre-existing cardiovascular and respiratory diseases.

Expert Attribution

Lasse Vestergaard, Chief Physician at Denmark’s Statens Serum Institut, which hosts EuroMOMO, described the figures as unusually high for the time of year. "It is difficult to explain this high excess mortality by anything but the extreme heat," Vestergaard told Reuters, noting that no other major factors, such as a significant COVID-19 outbreak, were identified during that week.

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The mortality spike is particularly notable as the combined death rate for the same countries was below typical levels for the preceding eight weeks. EuroMOMO cautioned that the data could be revised as more complete statistics become available.

Context and Regional Impact

The late-June heatwave smashed temperature records and caused widespread disruption, including power outages and school closures. Scientists have stated that such an event would have been "virtually impossible" without the influence of human-caused climate change, which increases the frequency and intensity of heatwaves.

While EuroMOMO does not break down the data by country, it highlighted that France and Belgium registered "very high excess" mortality during the last week of June. According to Belgium's public health institute, Sciensano, the country's excess mortality was the highest recorded during any heatwave since its records began in 2000.