Severe European heatwave kills hundreds and raises wildfire alarm across Italy and Balkans

An intense, record-setting heatwave continues to sweep Italy and the Balkans, claiming hundreds of lives, heightening wildfire concerns and upending routines across much of Europe.

Italian officials on Monday issued red heat warnings for 22 cities, stretching from Bolzano in the north to Palermo on Sicily in the south.

At the Vatican, worshippers sought shade beneath fans and umbrellas as Pope Leo addressed pilgrims from a balcony during his Angelus on the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, a public holiday in Rome.

Croatia’s meteorological agency raised red alerts across several areas, including the capital Zagreb and the coastal destinations of Split and Dubrovnik. On the Adriatic island of Vis, dozens of firefighters supported by four aircraft fought flames moving through pine woodland roughly 55 kilometres southwest of Split.

Large parts of the Balkans remained locked in extreme heat, with forecasts pointing to readings above 35 degrees Celsius across sections of Croatia, Serbia, Romania and Hungary. In neighbouring Albania, crews brought under control a blaze that had raced through scrub and olive groves near the southern settlement of Klos.

“With the extreme heat the risk of forest fires increases, but we are also seeing a lot of rainstorms, which obviously mitigates that risk,” Luca Mercalli, president of the Italian Meteorological Society, told Reuters. He added that the storms were scattered and rainfall totals would differ from one location to the next.

Meteorologists warn the scorching conditions are not nearing an end. Italian Air Force weather specialist Daniele Mocio said present temperatures should hold for several more days, running eight to 10 degrees Celsius above the seasonal norm.

Western Europe has gained modest respite after June temperature records, yet Mercalli expects another hot spell from July 5 or 6, reaching France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Switzerland and sections of Britain.

The continental heatwave, which started on June 20, has already burdened hospitals, harmed infrastructure and interrupted electricity production. The World Health Organization reports 1,300 excess deaths across Europe since June 21.

France alone has linked 1,000 excess fatalities to the heat. Its national public-health body said most of the dead were elderly and cautioned that the toll could climb further. French outlets reported that mortuaries in Paris and nearby districts were overwhelmed by the volume of remains.

Researchers concluded the event would have been “virtually impossible” without human-driven climate change, which they said made this week’s extreme overnight warmth about 100 times more probable than it was 20 years ago.

In a Sunday post on X, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Europe is warming faster than any other continent, at roughly twice the global pace. “Heat stress is often called the “silent killer,” he wrote. “European homes, workplaces and schools were not built for these temperatures.”