Heatwaves to increase 'fivefold by 2050', warns French weather bureau chief
"We have had more heatwaves in the last 15 years than during the previous 60 years," the CEO of France's weather bureau Météo-France, Virginie Schwarz said on Thursday. As France experiences its fourth heatwave of the summer, experts warn preventative measures to deal with the changing climate are severely lacking.
Issued on: 02/08/2026 - RFI
A deer walks in a forest as a wildfire burns in Le Temple, in southwestern France's Gironde department, amid drought conditions following a heatwave and water shortages across much of France, 29 July.
REUTERS - Yves Herman
"We are already seeing the effects of climate change," Schwarz told France Inter radio.
"We have experienced more heatwaves in the last 15 years than in the preceding 60 years ... and we expect a fivefold increase by 2050 and a tenfold increase by 2100."
Regarding the heatwaves and fires that marked the start of the summer of 2026, she said "one can only be shocked by the severity of these events" and added that, in her view, they are part of an ongoing trend.
"Climate change is already here. That said, there are still year-to-year differences compared to the average climate," Schwarz said. "It is the average climate that is shifting, and climate variability leads to particularly exceptional years within that average – years that are especially hot – and that is going to be the case this year."
Scientists say climate change is making destructive events such as droughts, floods and heatwaves more frequent and intense, and that Europe is the world's fastest-warming continent.
This June was the hottest recorded in western Europe, the Copernicus Climate Change Service said, noting thousands of excess deaths.
'We will pay in human lives'
For Jean-Pascal van Ypersele, a climate scientist and professor at the Universities of Louvain and Liège in Belgium, the current crisis should be seized upon "to create a new momentum" of climate action in terms of adaptation and prevention.
Speaking to RFI's sister TV channel France 24 on Wednesday, he described Europe's latest heatwave as further evidence of a structural transformation of the continent's climate.
While insisting that humanity has not yet reached "the point of no return," he nonetheless said that the world has entered a period of exceptional urgency in which the costs of delaying climate action are escalating rapidly.
"If we don't invest in climate action now, we will pay much more in money and human lives later," he says.
One of the key issues, he said, is accelerating the transition away from fossil fuels to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and encouraging more diversity in nature – such as planting different species of trees together, creating better resilience when faced with wildfires.
Alexander Held of the World Fire and Climate Resilience Initiative at the European Forest Institute agrees that forest management is essential to prevent the type of wildfires currently raging across Europe.
Held says that the fires, "while unprecedented, do not come as a surprise" thanks to decades of scientific studies and warnings predicting them.
"The fire research is very clear. We have all the ingredients for these disaster fires and all this is known," he told France 24 earlier this week.
He lamented numerous missed opportunities for action, with more money being poured into disaster management and response than prevention, saying: "We have to look beyond the flames."
Pointing to the need for better management of the land in terms of biomass, forests, agriculture and water supplies, he said: "Forests are the Swiss army knife for dealing with climate change because they bring us so much."
He added that the burnt ground in areas affected by the wildfires must now be analysed to best decide which types of trees or vegetation should be replanted.
Accelerated moisture loss
According to a report released by a team of international scientists last week, human-caused climate change has intensified a drought across Europe, with extreme heat, rather than low rainfall, driving the exceptionally dry conditions.
It found that today's hotter climate has accelerated moisture loss from Europe's soils, lakes and rivers, increasing the likelihood of bone-dry conditions.
Much of Europe received below-average rainfall during spring, but it was climate-driven heat that made the drought "more severe", said Imperial College London's Mariam Zachariah, who co-authored the World Weather Attribution group study.
"Overall, our results show that this drought is not primarily a story of low rainfalls but of a warmer atmosphere that is causing more moisture deficits on the land," Zachariah told reporters.
"This means that even in regions where the rainfall has changed little or is projected to increase seasonally, drought risk continues to rise."
This is because a warmer atmosphere can hold around 7 per cent more water vapour for every 1C rise in temperature, scientists say. The planet has warmed by around 1.4C since 1850–1900, primarily because of the burning of coal, oil and gas.
Seoul (AFP) – South Korea registered its highest temperature since records began more than a century ago on Sunday, as authorities warned people to "immediately" stop all outdoor activities in affected areas.
Issued on: 02/08/2026 - RFI
South Korea registered its highest temperature since records began more than a century ago on Sunday © JADE GAO / AFP
The southeastern city of Yangsan saw the temperature reach 42.5C at 1:26 pm (0426 GMT), the Korea Meteorological Administration said on its website.
Yangsan has been the epicentre of the ongoing heatwave, where temperatures exceeded 40C for a fifth consecutive day on Sunday, while many other cities including Daegu and Busan are seeing temperatures climb into the high 30s.
People flocked to air-conditioned shopping malls or cafes to escape the blistering temperatures, an AFP reporter saw.
The southeastern city of Yangsan saw the temperature reach 42.5C at 1:26 pm (0426 GMT), the Korea Meteorological Administration said on its website.
Yangsan has been the epicentre of the ongoing heatwave, where temperatures exceeded 40C for a fifth consecutive day on Sunday, while many other cities including Daegu and Busan are seeing temperatures climb into the high 30s.
People flocked to air-conditioned shopping malls or cafes to escape the blistering temperatures, an AFP reporter saw.
KMA data show the average annual number of heatwave days in the country has more than doubled to 19 over the past five years, from eight in the 1970s © JADE GAO / AFP
Ju Dong-yeol, 27, took refuge from the heat in a Starbucks in Seoul along with his parents and told AFP "it is too hot to be outside doing anything".
"I can't think of anything else to do other than stay in air-conditioned places like home, shopping malls and cafes," the office worker said.
More than 20 localities were under emergency heatwave alerts on Sunday -- a new warning category introduced this year to better address rising temperatures.
An emergency alert is issued when areas experiencing a heatwave are forecast to hit perceived temperatures of 38C or an actual temperature of 39C for the day.
Issuing a heat warning, the weather agency urged people to "immediately stop all outdoor activities", adding that "indoor spaces without air conditioning are dangerous".
Ju Dong-yeol, 27, took refuge from the heat in a Starbucks in Seoul along with his parents and told AFP "it is too hot to be outside doing anything".
"I can't think of anything else to do other than stay in air-conditioned places like home, shopping malls and cafes," the office worker said.
More than 20 localities were under emergency heatwave alerts on Sunday -- a new warning category introduced this year to better address rising temperatures.
An emergency alert is issued when areas experiencing a heatwave are forecast to hit perceived temperatures of 38C or an actual temperature of 39C for the day.
Issuing a heat warning, the weather agency urged people to "immediately stop all outdoor activities", adding that "indoor spaces without air conditioning are dangerous".
An emergency alert is issued when areas experiencing a heatwave are forecast to hit perceived temperatures of 38C or an actual temperature of 39C for the day © JADE GAO / AFP
"Move immediately to a cool place, such as a designated cooling centre or a shaded area, and stay hydrated while resting," it advised.
KMA data show the average annual number of heatwave days in the country has more than doubled to 19 over the past five years, from eight in the 1970s.
A heatwave day is defined as one with a maximum temperature of at least 33C.
Baseball cancelled
South Korea's professional baseball league was also forced to cancel one game in Changwon after the city's temperature climbed to 39.5 degrees Celsius during the day, marking the second consecutive game cancellation in the city.
"Move immediately to a cool place, such as a designated cooling centre or a shaded area, and stay hydrated while resting," it advised.
KMA data show the average annual number of heatwave days in the country has more than doubled to 19 over the past five years, from eight in the 1970s.
A heatwave day is defined as one with a maximum temperature of at least 33C.
Baseball cancelled
South Korea's professional baseball league was also forced to cancel one game in Changwon after the city's temperature climbed to 39.5 degrees Celsius during the day, marking the second consecutive game cancellation in the city.
Europe also sweltered through a scorching summer this year, with prolonged heatwaves pushing temperatures above 40C in parts of the south © RALF HIRSCHBERGER / AFP
"The decision was made with the safety and health of spectators and players as the top priority, as a severe heatwave warning remains in effect for the Changwon area," said the Korea Baseball Organization in a statement.
Scientists warn that extreme weather events such as heatwaves are becoming more frequent and intense as a result of human-induced climate change.
Adding to the extreme weather is the return this year of El Nino -- a natural climate phenomenon that warms Pacific Ocean surface temperatures and typically occurs every two to seven years.
Europe also sweltered through a scorching summer this year, with prolonged heatwaves pushing temperatures above 40C in parts of the south.
"The decision was made with the safety and health of spectators and players as the top priority, as a severe heatwave warning remains in effect for the Changwon area," said the Korea Baseball Organization in a statement.
Scientists warn that extreme weather events such as heatwaves are becoming more frequent and intense as a result of human-induced climate change.
Adding to the extreme weather is the return this year of El Nino -- a natural climate phenomenon that warms Pacific Ocean surface temperatures and typically occurs every two to seven years.
Europe also sweltered through a scorching summer this year, with prolonged heatwaves pushing temperatures above 40C in parts of the south.
European authorities issued health warnings, battled wildfires and urged people to avoid outdoor activities during afternoons © Wojtek RADWANSKI / AFP
European authorities issued health warnings, battled wildfires and urged people to avoid outdoor activities during afternoons.
After sweeping across western Europe at the start of last week, the season's latest heatwave scorched central Europe before reaching Italy over the weekend.
Italian authorities said nearly all of the country's major cities would be under the highest heat alert from Monday.
© 2026 AFP
European authorities issued health warnings, battled wildfires and urged people to avoid outdoor activities during afternoons.
After sweeping across western Europe at the start of last week, the season's latest heatwave scorched central Europe before reaching Italy over the weekend.
Italian authorities said nearly all of the country's major cities would be under the highest heat alert from Monday.
© 2026 AFP
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