Heat Records Shattered in France, The Netherlands; Brief Relief In Sight For Europe Heat Wave

Jon Erdman
Published: July 5,2015

A European heat wave has smashed monthly and even a few all-time records. The heat will persist through early in the week before some long-awaited relief arrives.
Highs this weekend surged to 38 degrees Celsius - about 100 degrees Fahrenheit - in parts of eastern France, Germany, and Switzerland, including Frankfurt and Geneva.
Temperatures as hot as 36 degrees Celsius (about 97F) were reported in western Poland and Slovakia while Cheb, in the western Czech Republic pushed toward 37 degrees C Sunday.
Even parts of southern Sweden pushed the 32 degrees Celsius (89.6F) mark Sunday.
Last Wednesday afternoon, the temperature at London's Heathrow Airport skyrocketed to 36.7 degrees Celsius -- 98.1 degrees Fahrenheit -- a July heat record not only there but for anywhere in the U.K., according to the U.K. Met Office.

Six-year-old Harvey enjoys playing with water as the Wimbledon Tennis Championships are seen on a huge screen in London, Wednesday, July 1, 2015.
(AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

The previous U.K. July heat record was set almost nine years ago -- 36.5 degrees C in Wisley on July 19, 2006. It was also the hottest day in Wimbledon history, topping the previous record of 34.6 degrees C on June 26, 1976.
Paris, France saw its temperature soar to 39.7 degrees Celsius -- 103.5 degrees Fahrenheit -- last Wednesday, the second hottest reading there dating to 1873, according to Météo-France.
Météo-France says three French locations chalked up all-time record highs last Wednesday, topping their highest temperatures from either the 2003 or 2006 heat waves:
- Boulogne-sur-Mer (35.4 degrees Celsius or 95.7 degrees Fahrenheit) beat their previous record from Aug. 11, 2003 (34.8C).
- Dieppe (38.3C or 100.9F) beat their previous record from July 19, 2006 (37C).
- Melun (39.4C or 102.9F) beat their previous record from Aug. 12, 2003 (38.9C).
On Thursday, Maastricht, in the far southeast of The Netherlands, rose to 38.2 degrees Celsius (100.8F), a new national July heat record, topping Westdorpe's 37.1C reading in 2006.
Earlier last week, heat records were toppled in parts of Spain.
Madrid (central Madrid) set a new June record high for the second day in a row Monday, reaching 39.7 degrees Celsius -- 103.5 degrees Fahrenheit -- edging out their previous June record of 39.1 degrees Celsius set last Sunday.
Monday afternoon, Madrid's Adolfo Suarez Madrid-Barajas Airport pushed up to 40 degrees Celsius (104 F), a first for June in records dating to 1945. According to AEMet, four other locations in Spain with records dating to at least the 1950s tied or set new June heat records Monday.
Cordoba, in southern Spain, reached a sizzling 43.7 degrees Celsius last Sunday (110.7ºF).
(FLASHBACK: Europe May Heat Records)

Europe Heat Wave Upper-Air Pattern

Current Temperatures

Five Day Forecast

This heat has now spread across a large part of the continent, and it looks like it'll last at least the next couple of days before an eagerly-awaited cold front sweeps in from the Atlantic Ocean.
The culprit for this heat wave was an area of high-pressure aloft nosing northeastward from the Iberian peninsula into parts of northern Europe.
Under this dome of high pressure aloft, dry, sinking air and generally light winds allowed stifling heat to build.
For the U.K., the truly record-shattering heat appeared to only last a day or so last week, however their friends across the English Channel aren't so fortunate.
(MORE: U.K. Detailed Weather Forecast)
Code orange heat alerts ("vigilance orange") have been issued by Meteo France for a large swath of central and eastern France. Code orange is the second-highest level on the four-color hazard scale adopted by national meteorological services in most European countries.
"Europeans, and the French in particular, have been painfully aware of the dangers of extreme heat since the killer heat wave of July 2003," said weather.com senior meteorologist Nick Wiltgen. According to the United Nations, an estimated 30,000 Europeans (14,000 in France alone) died in that heat wave, making it the deadliest natural disaster of the past 50 years in Europe.
(MORE: Extreme Heat Waves, Cold Snaps More Frequent)
Highs in Paris won't be quite as hot the next couple of days with readings between 29-31 degrees Celsius (84-88 F). The average high in Paris during July is about 25 degrees Celsius (77 degrees F).
Madrid, Spain will see temperatures near 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees) over the next several days. In fact, the central Madrid reporting station could threaten its all-time record high of 40.6 degrees Celsius recorded on Aug. 10, 2012.
A cold front should bring some heat relief by Wednesday from France into The Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and Austria.
That relief should arrive farther east into Poland, the Czech Republic and Austria by Thursday.
(FORECASTS: Amsterdam | Brussels | Berlin | Prague | Zurich | Vienna | Budapest | Krakow)
Unfortunately, that relief will be short-lived.
Late this week into next weekend, the heat will build back once again from Spain into the same heat-fatigued parts of Europe into the following week.
"The latest (long-range forecasts) suggest the ridge and heat will persist across central Europe and Iberia through the month (of July)," said Leon Brown, chief meteorologist based in the U.K. for The Weather Company.

MORE: The "Hidden Gems" of Europe