Simon Hunter
The Carlos III Institute has estimated that so far this year there have been 30,861 excess deaths in Spain, of which 3,833 are attributable to the unusually high temperatures registered in the country during July and August.
According to the Institute, which is part of the central Health Ministry, the figure for heat-related deaths is three times that of the same period last year, when the number of victims reached 1,356.
The excess deaths monitoring system in Spain, known as MoMo, also estimates a total of 5,783 heat-related deaths for the entire year. Of the 3,833 registered in the summer, there were 2,223 in July and 1,610 in August.
According to the AEMET state weather agency, this July was not only the hottest ever, but was also the hottest month ever recorded in Spain since records began in 1961. There was a heatwave during the middle of the month, as well as the arrival of warm air from the north of Africa.
What’s more, the months of June to August were the hottest ever recorded across Europe, according to the European Commission’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.
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