By: Stephanie Fu

In early June, an oppressive heat wave is spreading throughout western Europe and is causing temperatures to drastically rise. This record-breaking natural disaster has put the entire western Europe at risk of wildfire and water shortage.

Although temperatures across Europe have been rising significantly in recent years, this tremendous explosion of heat has left many scientists and authorities shocked. “This is the type of thing that climate scientists were warning about, and unfortunately, it does look like this is going to become more common,” said Alex Burkill, a senior meteorologist at the Meteorological Office, in an article by The Washington Post’s Karla Adam, Rick Noack, and Ian Livingston.

This intense heat wave has broken records for the highest temperatures this early in June, surpassing 107 degrees in France. The highest temperature recorded so far in this heat wave is in Andújar in southern Spain, hitting 111.5 degrees on June 10.

According to an article from The Washington Post, “in France and Germany, there are 5 percent or fewer homes that are equipped with air conditioning, while 90 percent of people in the United States have access to air conditioning.” Some French cities, such as Paris, rely on city parks, swimming pools, museums, and other areas that are cool and ideal to escape the boiling heat. Other cities use misting devices.

Dozens of heat warnings have been issued in Spain, and almost the entire country is under risk of wildfire. Water shortage is also becoming an increasingly concerning problem. The heat, as well as lack of rain, has reduced Europe’s major rivers to low levels.

Climate scientists are arguing that more needs to be done to stop the climate change that makes intense heat more frequent. “People aren’t taking it very seriously. They think about ice creams and having fun, but they aren’t seeing the risk for vulnerable people,” said Hannah Cloke, a climate scientist at the University of Reading, in an article by Karla Adam, Rick Noack and Ian Livingston. She also says that Britain was “really not prepared” for this heat wave, as many buildings are “not built to keep people cool.”

In addition to causing extreme heat and discomfort across Europe, many baby birds have died in Spain because of the heat. Swifts, a protected species, have nests in the cavities of buildings, which are often made of concrete or metal. The heat makes the buildings become a scorching oven, and the chicks, who can’t stand the heat, rush out of their nests when they can’t fly yet, resulting in the death of hundreds of baby birds.

Link to article: Europe heat wave hits U.K., Spain, France – The Washington Post.pdf