Summer of 2026 broke records in Europe, and caused deaths

Not only that, Germany's DWD weather service says that there was an "unprecedented" number of hot days this year. " On average across Germany, there were about 22 hot days with temperatures of at least 30 degrees Celsius and about five very hot days with temperatures of at least 35 degrees Celsius," the DWD wrote in in a press release at the end of August.

The estimated number of heat-related deaths also reached unprecedented levels, with at least 16,300 people dying by the end of August, even if few of them died directly because of the heat , but rather as a consequence of underlying health conditions exacerbated by the heat.

The figures were compiled from a statistical correlation between the number of deaths recorded by Germany's Federal Statistical Office and the temperatures measured by the DWD during a specific period.

Heat-related deaths in Germany are more likely if the average weekly temperature reaches 20 degrees Celsius or more. This is the average of all hourly temperatures recorded in a week, including at nighttime.

This year, the average weekly temperatures in the country rose above the 20-degree mark several times. It was particularly hot at the end of June, when the average weekly temperature reached above 26 degrees between the 22nd and 28th of the month.

Copyright for this text belongs to Deutsche Welle.