Last Week’s Heatwave Killed 2,300 People Across Europe: Study

By Staff, Agencies

An analysis by European climate scientists reveals that human-caused climate change was responsible for approximately 1,500 deaths during last week’s deadly heatwave across Europe.

The stud by London-based scientists used peer-reviewed methods to analyze mortality data and temperature records from 12 major cities, including London, Paris, Rome, and Madrid, during the heatwave from June 23 to July 2.

They calculated that 2,300 people died from the heat during the recent high temperatures in Europe. About two-thirds of these deaths—approximately 1,500—were directly attributable to the additional warming caused by climate change.

Unlike previous studies, which focused mainly on climate change’s effects on weather patterns such as heat, flooding, or drought, the study links heat waves directly to mortality. 

These individuals “have only died because of climate change, so they would not have died if it had not been for our burning of oil, coal, and gas in the last century,” study co-author Friederike Otto said.

Previous studies in 2021 linked excess heat-related deaths to climate change and carbon emissions, but did not focus on specific heatwave events like last week’s.

A 2023 study published in Nature Medicine estimated that since 2015, every 1-degree Celsius rise in temperature in Europe has led to an additional 18,547 summer heat-related deaths.

“Heat waves are silent killers and their health impact is very hard to measure,” co-author Gary Konstantinoudis said. 

He explained that people do not understand the actual mortality toll of heat waves and this is because doctors, hospitals and governments do not report heat as an underlying cause of death, but attribute deaths instead to heart, lung, or other organ problems.

Researchers found that greenhouse gas emissions pushed temperatures 2 to 4 degrees Celsius (3.6 to 7.2 degrees Fahrenheit) above what would have naturally occurred.

London saw the highest increase, nearly 4 degrees Celsius, while Lisbon experienced a smaller rise of about 1 degree Celsius due to the Atlantic Ocean’s cooling effect.

Western Europe experienced its warmest June on record, with much of the region experiencing "very strong heat stress."