A severe heatwave has gripped Europe, shattering temperature records across the continent and forcing thousands of schools to close as authorities struggle to protect children from dangerous heat levels.
Spain experienced its hottest June on record, with the state meteorological agency Aemet reporting that “June 2025 smashed records” with an average temperature of 23.6°C, exceeding the previous record set in 2017 by 0.8°C. The monthly average was a staggering 3.5°C higher than the 1991-2020 baseline, highlighting the intensity of the current weather pattern.
The extreme conditions reached their peak when Spain recorded its highest ever June temperature of 46°C in Huelva province, Andalucía. Not to be outdone, Portugal registered an even more extreme reading of 46.6°C in Mora, a town in the Évora district, marking the country’s highest June temperature in recorded history according to the Portuguese Institute for the Sea and Atmosphere.
France has been particularly hard hit by the educational crisis caused by the heatwave, with more than 1,896 schools across the country forced to close fully or partially on Tuesday. In Paris, which was placed on maximum heatwave alert, authorities advised parents to keep their children home on Tuesday and Wednesday as temperatures soared.
Prime Minister François Bayrou attempted to address mounting public anger over the crisis, announcing that the education ministry would open discussions with mayors about adapting school buildings. Most French schools suffer from extremely poor insulation, leaving them vulnerable to extreme temperatures.
The dire conditions in classrooms have forced teachers to resort to desperate measures, with some Paris educators using nothing more than water sprays to repeatedly mist children in an attempt to provide relief from the oppressive heat. Several towns, including Troyes and Melun, took the drastic step of closing all their schools entirely.
Bayrou, who faces a no-confidence vote on Tuesday which he is expected to survive, has cancelled his scheduled meetings to monitor the heatwave situation in real time, underscoring the severity of the crisis.
The extreme weather system, known in Germany as “Bettina,” is expected to engulf nearly the entire country by Wednesday, with temperatures approaching 40°C. Only coastal areas and Alpine peaks are expected to escape the scorching conditions.
Industry groups have issued warnings that critical infrastructure including schools, elderly care homes, and hospitals are ill-prepared for such extreme weather events. They emphasized this as an urgent issue requiring immediate attention as life-threatening weather patterns become increasingly frequent.
The heatwave’s impact extends far beyond the record-breaking temperatures in Spain and Portugal. Major European cities are experiencing unusually high temperatures, with Zaragoza reaching 39°C, Rome and Madrid both hitting 37°C, Athens also at 37°C, Brussels and Frankfurt am Main at 36°C, Tirana at 35°C, and even London recording 33°C.
The extreme heat has triggered additional emergencies across the region. Turkey’s forestry minister İbrahim Yumaklı reported that firefighters have responded to 263 wildfires across the country in recent days, while firefighting crews are also battling blazes in parts of France and Italy, particularly on the islands of Sardinia and Sicily.
As Europe grapples with this unprecedented early summer heatwave, the crisis has highlighted the urgent need for better preparation and infrastructure adaptation to handle increasingly frequent extreme weather events driven by climate change.
