Madrid, Spain. Spain recorded 1,029 excess deaths attributable to heat in June, official data showed on Wednesday, as a five-day heatwave with temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius made it the country’s second-hottest June on record.
The Health Ministry’s daily mortality monitoring system MoMo showed this was the highest number of heat-attributable deaths for the month of June since 2015.
Temperature records and mortality data
Average temperatures in June were 3.2 degrees Celsius above normal, weather agency AEMET said, making it the second-hottest June on record after June 2025.
According to the official data, June had the most deaths attributed to heat for that month since the monitoring period referenced in the report began in 2015.
Population exposure during the heatwave
At the peak of the heatwave on June 23, 35.7 million people, or about 73% of Spain’s population, were exposed to health risks due to the heat. Of those, 38% faced high risk.
Heatwave frequency and long-term trends
There have been 12 heatwaves in June since 1975, with six of them occurring in the past decade. The 13 hottest Junes since records began in 1961 have all occurred in the 21st century.
AEMET spokesperson Ruben del Campo said this showed heatwaves were appearing at the beginning of summer more frequently than before.
Broken records across local stations
Between June 1 and June 30, AEMET said 165 maximum temperature records were broken at local measuring stations, including 145 monthly records and 20 all-time records.
The agency said 225 highest minimum temperature records were also broken, including 180 monthly records and 45 all-time records.
Exceptional conditions in northern Spain
AEMET said the first heatwave of the summer was exceptional in northern Spain not only because of its intensity, but also because of its duration and persistence.
