WHO warns Europe of another dangerous heatwave as temperatures soar

The World Health Organization warned Europe was heading into another dangerous stretch of extreme heat as a new heatwave built over the Atlantic, with Portugal and southern Spain forecast to hit 43C this week. On July 7, the agency said it had convened an emergency call with representatives from 41 member states, the European Commission and civil-society groups because the next wave was imminent.

Hans Henri P. Kluge, the WHO Regional Director for Europe, framed the threat as a public-health emergency, not an ordinary summer pattern. He said heat can kill quickly, especially among older adults, people with chronic illness, outdoor workers and those without reliable access to cooling. France and the Benelux countries were also preparing for another heat surge, while parts of central Asia were already seeing temperatures above 40C.

The WHO used the escalating conditions to press a broader warning: heat-health action plans save lives only when warnings trigger real operational changes. That means meteorological alerts linked to hospital surge planning, outreach to vulnerable people and coordination across health, housing, social care and workplace safety systems. The agency pointed to countries already using those tools as the best proof that preparation matters.

Italy has built near-real-time mortality surveillance across 45 cities. Spain has worked with media partners to communicate risk more clearly. Austria has updated heat-protection rules for workplaces. Belgium reached the highest alert phase, a rare escalation. France has coordinated across sectors, and North Macedonia has partnered with Red Cross and Red Crescent teams to reach people without permanent housing.

The WHO’s message landed amid a summer in which heat is increasingly treated as a systems test for governments rather than a passing weather event. Hospitals, emergency planners, employers and local authorities are being asked to respond faster, track deaths sooner and protect people who are least able to escape the temperature outside. In that framework, the next 43C day is not just a forecast. It is a measure of whether countries have learned from the deadlier European summers that came before it.