Overview

• Researchers estimate 62,775 heat-related deaths across Europe from June to September 2024, the continent’s warmest summer on record.
• The study finds women faced 47% higher heat mortality than men, with the risk peaking among people aged 75 and older whose mortality was 323% higher than other age groups.
• Italy recorded the most heat-linked deaths in 2024 at a little over 19,000, followed by Spain with 6,743, where the province of Madrid led with 1,086 deaths.
• Greece, Bulgaria, and Serbia had the highest estimated mortality rates per million people in 2024.
• Models calibrated on 2015–2019 temperature and mortality data were applied to 2022–2024 observations, reinforcing calls for targeted adaptation as southern Europe warms about twice as fast as the global average.