PARIS, France, July 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - An area of Europe with 410 million 
people -- more than two-thirds of the continent's population -- experienced 
temperatures over 35oC at least once during a June 15-30 heatwave, according 
to an AFP analysis.

By comparison, some 320 million people in Europe experienced such 
temperatures during a record-setting heatwave between August 1 and 17, 2003.

AFP made the calculations using daily maximum temperature data from the 
European Drought Observatory and population figures from the Joint Research 
Centre.

Almost the entire population of mainland France and more than three-quarters 
of the combined populations of Spain and Italy experienced temperatures 
exceeding 35oC at some point during the June heatwave, which stretched from 
the Iberian Peninsula to Ukraine, passing through the Balkans and Germany.

Temperatures exceeded 35oC in an area surrounding the Spanish city of Lleida, 
Catalonia, for at least 16 consecutive days, according to an AFP analysis of 
data from the European observatory.

More broadly, daily maximum temperatures rose above 35oC for nearly 50 
million people across Europe on at least 10 occasions during the heatwave.

These included 18 million people in central and southern France, over 15 
million in northeastern and southwestern Spain, and 12 million in northern 
Italy, mainly in the Po Valley.

All-time temperature records were broken in Germany, Poland, Slovakia, the 
Czech Republic, and Hungary, as well as June records in the United Kingdom 
and Switzerland.

Average temperatures in France hit record highs, notably including the 
hottest nights ever recorded in the country.