Spain under red heat alerts as temperatures exceed 40°C

Spain is enduring its first official heatwave of 2026, with nearly the entire country under weather alerts and temperatures soaring past 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit). The national weather agency, AEMET, has issued its highest-level red alerts for extraordinary danger in parts of southern Andalusia, including around Córdoba, and in northern regions including the Basque Country around Bilbao and parts of Cantabria. Large central and northern areas are under orange alerts, while most remaining regions face yellow warnings, leaving only coastal zones and the Canary Islands without heat alerts.

The intense heat, which began over the weekend, is expected to persist until at least Thursday, June 25. On Monday, June 22, the town of Andújar in Jaén, Andalusia, recorded a high of 45.1 degrees Celsius. AEMET reported that 101 of its 828 weather stations across Spain registered temperatures of 40C or higher that day, with around 30 stations failing to drop below 25C overnight into Tuesday, highlighting the phenomenon of tropical nights. Forecasts predict temperatures will continue to reach between 35C and over 40C in many areas, with cities like Seville, Zaragoza, Madrid,...