Temperatures to exceed 40C in European heatwave as three die in France

Three people died in France from health issues caused by extreme heat and almost 2,700 French schools were set to close or modify timetables as authorities across Europe issued heatwave warnings for Monday.

Temperatures in Bordeaux in southwestern France were forecast to exceed 42 degrees Celsius on Monday and weather agency Meteo France said 49 regional administrative areas will be under a red heatwave warning on Monday.

"We’re heading for, at the very least, several days of very, very hot weather. We don’t know when temperatures will start falling," French Health Minister Stephanie Rist said on TV channel TF1.

In Spain, state weather agency Aemet issued a red alert for the Basque country, with the mercury in San Sebastian set to rise to a high of 40C, almost double its historic average for the time of year, according to the Reuters Climate Monitor. "We are seeing temperatures between 5 and 10 degrees above normal for this time of year, and in some northern areas even more than 10 degrees above average," said Rubén del Campo, spokesperson for Aemet.

LITTLE RELIEF AT NIGHT

The night was providing little relief in some parts of Spain, with temperatures failing to drop below 25C or even 30C in places like the southwestern province of Almeria, Aemet said.

Europe on Monday was the continent furthest from its historic norm, with an average high temperature of 24C, which was 4.1C above what was typical from 1961-1990, according to the climate monitor. By comparison, Asia and North America were 2C and 1.3C above the historic norm.

Wildlife shelters in northern Europe were struggling to cope with the number of animals being brought in suffering from the heat. Birds such as swifts, swallows, sparrows and starlings, which make their nests in the eaves of roofs, have been particularly affected by abnormally high temperatures, said Romaine de Jaegere, a biologist and founder of the Centre for the Rehabilitation of Animals Living in the Wild (Creaves) wildlife refuge in Temploux in Belgium.

"Temperatures on the roofs can sometimes reach 50, even 60 degrees Celsius. So they prefer to jump rather than let themselves die and literally cook in their nests," De Jaegere told Reuters, adding that the shelter had received 150 animals in the last three days.