Heat-trapping buildings and no AC: Why Central Europe isn’t prepared for the looming heatwave

Record-breaking temperatures have sweltered much of Western Europe this week, as the latest heatwave of the year nears its peak.

Drowning deaths have soared in France, as citizens scramble to cool off in rivers and canals, while thousands of homes were left without electricity due to intense heat triggering an incident in the northwest department of Finistère.

The country witnessed its hottest day since measurements began on Tuesday (23 June), with national weather service Météo-France recording a blistering 44.3°C in Possos – while other regions on red alert baked under unprecedented highs.

In the UK, Brits are bracing for highs of up to 38°C – while the country has already experienced its hottest June day on record after temperatures hit 36.1°C. Hundreds of schools have been closed due to concerns that pupils will not be safe in sweltering buildings.

In Spain, temperatures are forecast to dip slightly. It is a much-needed relief after 44°C days scorched southern Andalusia on Tuesday, but balmy temperatures will still continue.

However, weather forecasters warn that the atmospheric dome cooking Western Europe will soon migrate east – to countries even less prepared for intense heat.

Europe’s heatwave is starting to shift

According to WFY24’s latest forecasts, weekend temperatures are expected to reach a scorching 40°C in Budapest and 39°C in Prague, 15°C above the average June day.

Bratislava, in Slovakia, is also bracing for highs of up to 39°C, a staggering 17°C above average daily temperatures, while temperatures around the Danubian Plain in Bulgaria could hit 41°C on Sunday (28 June).

All of these regions will experience tropical nights over the weekend, where the temperature doesn’t dip below 20°C in a 24-hour period.

Can Central Europe cope with the heatwave?

The heatwave in Western Europe has resulted in widespread chaos and dozens of fatalities, despite years of efforts from Mediterranean countries preparing for such extremes.

Spain, for example, now has one of the world’s biggest networks of climate shelters, offering vulnerable communities a space to cool down and hydrate.

It has also made changes to outdoor working conditions, aimed to strengthen protections for employees, while its siesta culture provides relief from the hottest part of the day.

In France, Paris has been tackling the urban heat island effect – where cities stay hotter than their rural counterparts – by removing heat-trapping concrete and asphalt from its streets.

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), more than 100,000 trees have been planted in Paris since 2020, including 40,000 over winter 2023 – providing citizens with more life-saving shade.

However, large parts of central and eastern Europe remain woefully unarmed against scorching temperatures due to their typically cooler climate.

“Central Europe’s pre-war masonry cores and communist-era concrete panel blocks have very high thermal mass but were never designed to shed summer heat,” Ioanna Vergini, founder of WFY24, tells Euronews Earth.

“With little shading, limited ventilation and no cooling, they absorb heat through the day and release it indoors well into the night. Top-floor flats fare worst, and these prefab blocks are repeatedly flagged among the most heat-vulnerable housing in the region.”

Air conditioning, which can be life-saving during hot spells, is also far less common around central Europe compared to sunnier destinations across the Mediterranean – even compared to low installation numbers in countries like France.

“For most Central European households the only relief is opening a window at night, which is exactly the relief this event removes,” Vergini explains.

Tropical nights are preventing Europeans from escaping the heat when the sun sets, meaning the body gets less chance to recover during the night.

“Hot nights are an independent driver of heat-related deaths in European heatwaves, alongside the daytime peak rather than secondary to it, and recent research points to exactly these compound day-and-night events as the most dangerous,” Vergini adds.

The impacts of extreme heat

Bulgaria, Hungary and Czechia now risk putting severe strain on hospitals and emergency services, which usually see increased demand during intense heat.

Just like in the UK, schools and public institutions that lack cooling infrastructure may also be forced to close or change their operating times.

“Construction and agricultural labour in the Danube plains, plus the rail network, are the usual operational pressure points,” Vergini warns.

“Heat brings speed restrictions and a buckling risk as track temperatures climb, and several Central European operators have already flagged heat measures during this spell.”