At least 193 million people in Europe were expected to experience temperatures above 35C on Saturday, according to the latest forecasts from Germany, one of the hardest hit countries.
The unprecedented hot spell has already seen records tumble in Britain, France, Switzerland and is showing no sign of letting up.
Scores of people have died either through heat-related illness or drowning accidents and emergency services in several countries have said their facilities are saturated.
Street parties and music festivals were cancelled in France, Germany and the Netherlands – though Pride March went ahead in Budapest despite the extreme heat warnings.
Current Europe heatwave 'impossible' without human-induced climate change
The authorities in Paris cancelled several events, including the city's annual Pride March and the Solidays AIDS fundraiser event.
Paris's hospital authority said emergency calls in the capital had risen by 80 percent in the past week, compared with the same week last year.
Deputy mayor in charge of health, Antoine Alibert told local media stretchers were "piling up in the corridors".
"We are in the midst of a health crisis. This is an exceptional and extreme heatwave event," he said. People hold umbrellas in the colors of a Pride flag during the Budapest Pride march in Budapest, Hungary, 27 June 2026.
Both Switzerland and France had switched off nuclear reactors as the water used for cooling was in danger of overheating nearby rivers.
The German Weather Service (DWD) issued a red alert for most of the country on Saturday, and said late afternoon that it had recorded its highest ever temperature with 41.5C recorded in eastern Germany.
"It can't be ruled out that temperatures could approach 42C," the service said, which would mean another all-time heat record just a day after the previous one.
Denmark's weather service said early afternoon Saturday that the country had recorded its highest temperature ever, and then an hour later said the record had lasted just an hour, with the mercury hitting 37C just north of Aarhus.
The Czech Republic also recorded its highest-ever temperature, with a reading of 40.6C just north of Prague.
Why is Europe heating twice as fast as the rest of the planet?
Scientists have shown that recurring heatwaves are a clear marker of global warming driven by humans burning fossil fuels – and are set to become more frequent, longer and more intense.
Experts said a "heat dome" of trapped air from north Africa was causing the intense weather, and although the phenomenon was not unprecedented, the temperatures were.
Romania was the latest country to issue a red alert, putting out a warning that almost the entire country would face extreme heat from Monday to Wednesday.
Slovakia had issued a similar warning and confirmed that Friday night had been the warmest on record with temperatures not dropping below 26.3C.
The Czech Republic, Hungary and Moldova were also on the highest alert for the weekend, with Balkan countries also bracing for a tough few days.
(with AFP)
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