Europe's June · The road to COP31

"This event would not have been possible in June without climate change," Imperial College researcher Theodore Keeping told Al Jazeera.

Official weekly statistics count excess deaths: deaths above the number expected. For 22 to 28 June: 2,025 in France, 5,753 in Germany, 577 in the Netherlands.

Excess deaths and heat-related deaths are different measures. Excess deaths are counted from death registers; heat-related deaths are estimated by models. For France, the official count for the peak week was 2,025 excess deaths; a modelling study estimated more than 2,700 heat-related deaths over 18 days.

Sources

• S-10 · World Weather Attribution, Fossil fuel emissions have rapidly worsened European heatwaves in just a few decades
• S-11 · World Weather Attribution, same study (night-time likelihood)
• S-12 · Al Jazeera, 26 June 2026, on the WWA study (urban heat-stress records)
• S-14 · Met Office, More than 2,700 excess deaths estimated in England and Wales during May and June heatwaves, 13 July 2026
• S-15 · Carbon Brief, Q&A: Europe's May and June heatwave deaths, citing national agencies and EuroMoMo
• S-16 · Carbon Brief, same Q&A, citing a statistical model by Chris Callahan (15-28 June)
• S-17 · Carbon Brief, guest post by Christopher Callahan and Andrew Dessler on France's June heat-related deaths, 7 July 2026
• S-18 · Al Jazeera, 26 June 2026 (quote of Theodore Keeping)

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