London heatwave linked to 263 additional deaths, study finds

As temperatures in London soared to 34.7°C in recent weeks, an estimated 263 excess deaths have been attributed to heat-related causes.

This is according to a new study which said that 171 of the deaths were linked directly to climate change, which is estimated to have raised baseline temperatures by nearly four degrees celsius.

The capital was under an amber health alert at the time, warning of potential disruption to healthcare services, including hospitals.

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Climate scientists from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine reported that London temperatures were 3.95 degrees higher than they would be without global warming, tripling the number of heat-related deaths.

These figures follow trends from the summer of 2022 heatwave, when almost 3,000 people died across the UK.

Dr Fredi Otto, a climate scientist at Imperial College London, warned that even small increases of “two or three degrees in heat can be the difference between life and death.”

She added: “Climate change is an absolute game changer when it comes to extreme heat, but still very much under-recognised.”

Elsewhere in Europe, the same 10-day heatwave caused around 2,300 deaths across 12 major cities, according to preliminary figures. Of these, approximately 1,500 deaths (65 per cent) were attributed to climate change, as global warming pushed regional temperatures up by between one and four degrees.

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Climate change has therefore tripled the death toll during the European heat wave, according to researchers at Imperial College London.

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It was linked to 317 excess heat-related deaths in Milan, as well as 286 in Barcelona, 235 in Paris, 164 in Rome, 108 in Madrid, 96 in Athens, 47 in Budapest, 31 in Zagreb, 21 in Frankfurt, 21 in Lisbon, and six in Sassari.

People aged over 65 accounted for 88 per cent of the deaths, emphasising how underlying health conditions such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes increase vulnerability during extreme heat.

However, younger people were not immune. In the latest European heatwave, an estimated 43 people aged 20 to 44 and 253 people aged 45 to 64 are also believed to have died from heat-related causes.

Other at-risk groups include young children, who overheat more quickly, and pregnant women, who face a heightened risk of premature birth during extreme temperatures.

Experts also warned that low-income and vulnerable communities are more likely to suffer during heatwaves due to reduced access to air conditioning, clean water, sunscreen, and green space.

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Although summer heat is inevitable, Dr Ben Clarke from Imperial College London said: “Climate change has made it significantly hotter than it would have been, which in turn makes it a lot more dangerous.”

Last month was the world’s third-hottest June on record, behind June in 2024 and 2023. This is according to the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.

These findings have led to calls to redesign buildings and outdoor spaces to withstand the kinds of high temperatures that homes and infrastructure in the UK were never built to handle.

Dr Chloe Brimmicombe told Sky News: “There has been no strategy from multiple governments to adapt the health, social and care sector buildings to heat, despite calls and research highlighting a huge need.”

According to a study by University College London, this follows warnings that heat deaths in England and Wales could increase 50-fold by the 2070s if homes are not adapted, which could cause tens of thousands of heat deaths in the coming decades.

Featured image via Unsplash