Three dead in Spain and top of Eiffel Tower shut in Paris as heatwave scorches Europe

Europe is sweltering through a brutal heatwave, with deadly wildfires breaking out in Spain and records being broken in a number of countries.

A deadly wildfire has broken out in Spain and the top of the Eiffel Tower has been closed in Pairs – which was placed on red alert on Tuesday – as southern Europe swelters through a brutal heatwave.

The summer’s first major heatwave has scorched countries along the northern coast of the Mediterranean.

The Mediterranean Sea itself was warmer than usual, recording a new June high of 26.01C on Sunday, according to French weather service scientist Thibault Guinaldo, citing data from EU monitor Copernicus.

According to scientists, extreme weather events, such as heatwaves and storms, are becoming more intense due to man-made climate change.

Thousands of people have died in Europe during past heatwaves, prompting authorities to issue warnings for old and young, the sick, and others vulnerable to what experts call a “silent killer”.

People cool off in the Barcaccia fountain during an ongoing heatwave with temperatures reaching 40 degrees in Rome, Italy on July 1. Picture: Antonio Masiello/Getty

Three dead in Spain

In Spain – where temperatures have exceeded 40 degrees Celsius – firefighters said they found two bodies after a fire broke out in the Catalonia region in the country’s north east.

Authorities had on Tuesday confined about 14,000 people to their homes due to two wildfires that broke out almost simultaneously in the province of Lerida.

In one of the blazes, near the city of Cosco, “two people were found lifeless by firefighters”, the fire and emergency service said in a statement.

The exact cause of the fire was unclear, but the service said the recent heat, dry conditions and strong winds caused by storms had increased the intensity of the flames.

An uncontrolled fire rages across the grasslands in the Segarra region, in the rural province of Lleida, Spain, on July 1, 2025. Picture: AP Photo/ Agents Rurals de Catalunya, HO

Catalonia regional president Salvador Illa said he was “dismayed after learning of the death of two people as a result of the fire”, in a post on X.

Hours earlier, police in the region had reported the death of a two-year-old boy after he was left in a parked car in the sun for several hours.

Earlier, one person died in the southern city of Cordoba and another in Barcelona, both while doing road work on Saturday. They were both likely victims of heatstroke.

That day, temperatures in southern Spain soared to 46C – a new record for June – the national weather agency said.

Eiffel Tower’s top floor closes in Paris

In France, the heatwave was due to peak on Tuesday and Wednesday after the night from Sunday to Monday was the highest ever recorded for June.

Paris was put on alert for extreme heat on Tuesday and the Eiffel Tower’s summit was closed on Tuesday and Wednesday, with tourists prohibited from visiting the landmark’s top floor.

“Due to the current heatwave, the Eiffel Tower is taking measures to ensure the comfort and safety of our visitors and staff,” a message on the Eiffel Tower’s website reads.

“The Summit is closed all day on July 2 … Visits to the 2nd and 1st floors are still possible.”

The sun rises by the Eiffel Tower and the Sacre Coeur Basilica on top of the Montmartre hill in Paris on July 1, 2025, as the city is on red alert for high temperatures. Picture: Thibaud MORITZ / AFP

Other cities in Paris have been offering different ways to stay cool, from free swimming pools in Marseille to parks open until 11:00pm in Bordeaux.

Meanwhile, about 400 hectares of vegetation were destroyed by fire off a motorway in France’s south on Sunday. The blaze was blamed on a poorly extinguished barbecue.

People use a public fountain to cool off in Paris. Picture: Kiran Ridley/Getty

Prisons swelter in Italy

Over in Italy, authorities have issued red alerts for 18 cities over the next few days, including Rome, Milan, Verona, Perugia and Palermo.

Italy’s opposition parties urged the government on Monday to improve conditions in the country’s stifling prisons, which are notoriously overcrowded.

The same problem also affects French prisons and the prison governors’ union called the situation “unbearable”.

Heat “exacerbates existing frustrations and tensions”, added Wilfried Fonck, national secretary of the Ufap Unsa Justice prison union.

“The situation needs to be defused to stop things from escalating more than usual,” he told AFP.

A man cools off during an ongoing heatwave in Italy were temperatures are reaching 40 degrees. Picture: Antonio Masiello/Getty

Other nations sizzle

In Turkey, rescuers evacuated over 50,000 people who were threatened by a string of wildfires, the AFAD disaster agency said on Monday.
Most of the people were evacuated from the western province of Izmir, where winds of 120 kilometres per hour fanned the blazes.

Rescuers evacuated more than 50,000 people, mostly from Turkey's western Izmir province, as firefighters battled a string of wildfires. Picture: Ahmet Ayberk Cimen/ AFP

Meanwhile, in Portugal, the national meteorological agency said the temperature had reached 46.6C in Mora on Sunday, which experts cited by local media said was a new June record.

In Croatia, the vast majority of the coastline was on red alert as of Tuesday, and an extreme temperature alert issued has been issued for Montenegro.

Over in England, the temperature soared to 34.7C in central London on Tuesday, according to the Met Office.
The figure beat the previous highest temperature of 34.4C recorded in Writtle, Essex, earlier in the day.

Originally published as Three dead in Spain and top of Eiffel Tower shut in Paris as heatwave scorches Europe