Official heat warnings are in effect again for almost all of Germany on Wednesday. Under high pressure, "increasingly hot to very hot air" continues to flow in from the south, the German Weather Service (DWD) in Offenbach announced. This is causing "very high heat stress" in the southwest and west, which is gradually spreading further north.
Warnings of severe or even extreme heat applied on Wednesday, according to the DWD, to practically all regions except parts of Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and Brandenburg. Maximum temperatures of between 27 and 34 degrees in the north and 32 to 39 degrees in the rest of the country are expected throughout the day, with predominantly sunny and dry weather. Isolated thunderstorms are possible in the southern upland areas.
According to the meteorologists, many areas also experienced what is known as a tropical night, in which temperatures do not fall below 20 degrees. Temperatures are set to rise further in the coming days, as the air flowing into central Europe will become even hotter.
From Thursday and Friday, local temperatures of up to 41 degrees are expected in the west and southwest. On Saturday, generally extremely hot temperatures of between 35 and 41 degrees are forecast, with the exception of the far north. This means the existing June temperature record could also be broken. From Saturday onwards, powerful thunderstorms with the potential for severe weather are also expected.
The heatwave has had large parts of western Europe in its grip for several days, triggering heat warnings and temperature records. Those affected include France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Belgium, among others. It is already the second heatwave in Europe within the space of a month. According to scientists, such periods of extremely high temperatures are becoming more frequent and more intense as a result of climate change.
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