Another intense heatwave is sweeping across Europe, with forecasts indicating that more than half of the continent's population will face temperatures above 30°C on Wednesday. In areas home to at least 92 million people, the mercury is expected to climb past 35°C, according to meteorological data.
The most severe conditions are concentrated in Western and Southern Europe, with France, Italy, and Spain among the worst affected. Much of Spain is under alert, with temperatures predicted to exceed 35°C from the northwest to the southeast. France is also bracing for similar highs in several regions, though cooler air is expected in the northeast and mountainous areas.
Nuclear power and jellyfish
The heat has taken a toll on France's energy infrastructure. On Wednesday, the country recorded a 20% shortfall in nuclear power generation capacity, a record outage attributed to drought, extreme heat, and an unusual culprit: a jellyfish invasion that clogged the cooling water intake pumps at reactors, as reported by Le Monde.
Experts link the jellyfish proliferation to overfishing, plastic pollution, and warmer waters driven by climate change, which together create favorable conditions for their reproduction.
The heatwave extends into the Balkans, particularly Greece and the Adriatic coast. Persistent high temperatures have worsened drought conditions, straining national energy systems, damaging crops, and fueling wildfires across the region.
UK braces for record summer
In the United Kingdom, wildfire warnings remain in place for large parts of Scotland, according to several British media outlets. The government is convening an emergency Cobra committee, chaired by Prime Minister Andy Burnham, to coordinate a response. This will be the second such meeting this year, following one in June.
The Met Office issued an Amber Extreme Heat Warning, stating: "Temperatures will rise quickly tomorrow, with many areas reaching 35°C+ and highs of 36-37°C possible, especially across the Midlands, east and southeast." The UK is on track to record its warmest summer on record, the national weather service said.
Europe is the world's fastest-warming continent, and the first two months of summer have been marked by successive heatwaves, scorching temperatures, and bone-dry conditions. France and Spain have battled their worst wildfires in living memory this summer, while other nations, including those in the US northwest and Canada, have also experienced serious blazes.
As the continent grapples with these extreme conditions, the need for water resilience measures becomes ever more urgent. The ongoing wildfires across southern Europe highlight the immediate dangers, while France's water restrictions underscore the long-term challenges of drought management.
