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Scorching European heatwave turns deadly in Spain, Italy and France
A wildfire in Spain and high temperatures elsewhere in Europe have claimed another six lives as the continent swelters in temperatures topping 40C.
Two farmers died when they became trapped by flames near the town of Coscó in Spain’s Catalonia region. Authorities said a farm worker had appealed to his boss for help, but they were unable to escape as fire spread over a large area.
In Italy, two men died after becoming unwell on beaches on the island of Sardinia, and a man in his 80s died of heart failure, after walking into a hospital in Genoa.
A 10-year-old American girl collapsed and died while visiting the Palace of Versailles south-west of Paris , reports said.
According to French broadcaster TF1, she collapsed at the courtyard of the royal estate, in front of her parents, at around 18:00 local time on Tuesday. Despite efforts by the castle’s security team and emergency services, she was pronounced dead an hour later.
France’s ecological transition minister Agnès Pannier-Runacher said earlier that two heat-related fatalities had been recorded in France and that more than 300 people had been given emergency care.
The European continent is experiencing extremely high temperatures, a phenomenon that the UN’s climate agency said is becoming more frequent due to “human-induced climate change”.
For Spain and England, the month of June marked their hottest June since records began. Spain’s weather service, Aemet, said last month’s average temperature of 23.6C (74.5F) “pulverised records”, surpassing the normal average for July and August.
The two men who died in the fire in Catalonia were identified later as the farmer owner and a worker aged 32 and 45.
Emergency services said the fire had spread to an area of up to 6,500 hectares.
Aemet forecast temperatures of 41C in the southern city of Córdoba on Wednesday, and said overnight temperatures were as high as 28C in the nearby town of Osuna the night before.
France has registered its second-hottest June since records began in 1900. June 2023 was hotter.
Four departments in France remained on the red alert level for heat on Wednesday, the highest level. These include Aube, Cher, Loiret and Yonne, according to Météo-France.
In Sardinia, where temperatures have exceeded 40C in recent days, a 75-year-old man died after falling ill on a beach in Budoni. Another man, 60, became sick while on the beach of Lu Impostu in San Teodoro.
Two construction workers in the Italian province of Vicenza were rushed to hospital at 15:30 local time on Tuesday because they fell ill as a result of the heat while working in a hole. One of the workers is in a coma, according to the Ansa news agency.
Meanwhile two wildfires have prompted emergency evacuations in Greece, as authorities warn of a very high fire risk across many regions, including Attica, Crete, and parts of the Peloponnese and Aegean islands.
In Halkidiki, a fast-moving blaze near the coastal village of Vourvourou burned through highly flammable pine forest, forcing residents and campers to flee. Power cuts have been reported in the area, while 65 firefighters, ground teams, and aerial units are battling the flames in steep terrain.
Meanwhile, in Crete, a separate wildfire near Ierapetra triggered emergency alerts in Achlia, Ferma, Agia Fotia and Galini, prompting evacuations of homes and hotels.
Strong winds pushed the fire dangerously close to tourist accommodation, with helicopters and fire crews working to prevent further spread.
Dimple Rana, heat and microclimate specialist at sustainable development consultancy Arup, told the BBC there was “a big link between heat-related impact and age”.
In the UK, for example, most heat-related deaths were among older adults, Ms Rana said. Younger children, particularly those under five, were also at risk.
Another factor to consider is that often people on lower incomes undertake more manual work, Ms Rana said, meaning they are more exposed to higher temperatures.
Heatwaves are becoming more common due to human-caused climate change, according to the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Extreme hot weather will happen more often – and become even more intense – as the planet continues to warm, it has said.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO), which is the UN’s weather and climate agency, said on Tuesday that human-induced climate change meant “extreme heat is becoming more frequent and intense”.
In a statement, the WMO added: “The effect of heat on human health is more pronounced in cities as a result of the urban heat island effect.
“This is where urban environments are significantly warmer than surrounding rural areas, especially during hot periods, due to an abundance of paved surfaces, buildings, vehicles, and heat sources.”
“This additional heat in cities exacerbates heat stress and can increase mortality during hot periods,” the agency said.
[BBC]
Australia captain Alyssa Healy will retire from all forms of cricket following the upcoming series against India.
The 35-year-old wicket-keeper has more than 7,000 runs and 275 dismissals to her name in all formats of the game and led Australia to a historic 16-0 whitewash of England 8n the Ashes in 2025.
She has won the World Cup twice, with the highest individual score of 170 in a World Cup final coming against England in 2022, and the T20 World Cup on six occasions.
Healy said: “I’m still passionate about playing for Australia, but I’ve somewhat lost that competitive edge that’s kept me driven since the start, so the time feels right to call it a day.
“I’ll genuinely miss my team-mates, singing the team song and walking out to open the batting for Australia. Representing my country has been an incredible honour and I’m grateful for one last series in the green and gold.”
Healy is married to Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc and is the niece of another Australian great in wicket keeper Ian Healy. She also already has a successful broadcasting career as a pundit and commentator.
Todd Greenberg, Cricket Australia CEO said: “Alyssa is one of the all-time greats of the game and has made an immeasurable contribution both on and off the field over her 15-year career.
“We look forward to celebrating her achievements throughout the series against India.”
Australia host India in a Test match, three one-day internationals and three T20 matches in February and March
(BBC Sports)
About 550,000 accounts were blocked by Meta during the first days of Australia’s landmark social media ban for kids.
In December, a new law began requiring that the world’s most popular social media sites – including Instagram and Facebook – stop Australians aged under 16 from having accounts on their platforms.
The ban, which is being watched closely around the world, was justified by campaigners and the government as necessary to protect children from harmful content and algorithms.
Companies including Meta have said they agree more is needed to keep young people safe online. However they continue to argue for other measures, with some experts raising similar concerns.
“We call on the Australian government to engage with industry constructively to find a better way forward, such as incentivising all of industry to raise the standard in providing safe, privacy-preserving, age appropriate experiences online, instead of blanket bans,” Meta said in a blog update.
The company said it blocked 330,639 accounts on Instagram, 173,497 on Facebook, and 39,916 on Threads during it’s first week of compliance with the new law.
They again put the argument that age verification should happen at an app store level – something they suggested lowers the burden of compliance on both regulators and the apps themselves – and that exemptions for parental approval should be created.
“This is the only way to guarantee consistent, industry-wide protections for young people, no matter which apps they use, and to avoid the whack-a-mole effect of catching up with new apps that teens will migrate to in order to circumvent the social media ban law.”
Various governments, from the US state of Florida to the European Union, have been experimenting with limiting children’s use of social media. But, along with a higher age limit of 16, Australia is the first jurisdiction to deny an exemption for parental approval in a policy like this – making its laws the world’s strictest.
The policy is wildly popular with parents and envied by world leader, with the Tories this week pledging to follow suit if they win power at the next election, due before 2029.
However some experts have raised concerns that Australian kids can circumvent the ban with relative ease – either by tricking the technology that’s performing the age checks, or by finding other, potentially less safe, places on the net to gather.
And backed by some mental health advocates, many children have argued it robs young people of connection – particularly those from LGBTQ+, neurodivergent or rural communities – and will leave them less equipped to tackle the realities of life on the web.
(BBC)
They began with a scrappy last-ball win to kick off WPL 2026, but there was nothing scrappy about Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) second win, over UP Warriorz, on Monday night.
Grace Harris tore into her former franchise with a breathtaking assault, sending the ball to all parts of the DY Patil Stadium. By the time she was out for a 40-ball 85, RCB needed just seven runs to win with 50 deliveries remaining.
In an effort similar to her opening-night honours, Lauren Bell swung the new ball and troubled Warriorz’s openers in her first two overs. In trying to break the stranglehold, Harleen Deol attempted to jailbreak in her third, but could only spoon a catch to Smriti Mandhana at mid-off for a 14-ball 11. And just like that, UP Warriorz had seen two different opening pairs come and go without giving them the start they were after.
She was denied a wicket in her first over – the sixth of the innings – when Meg Lanning’s swipe landed agonisingly short of Arundhati Reddy at backward square leg, but Shreyanka Patil had Lanning hack uncharacteristically to Radha Yadav at deep midwicket off her next.
In the same over, she also had a second wicket when Phoebe Litchfield flat-batted a short ball straight to Mandhana at mid-on, shortly after having reverse-swept her for six
Coming off a four-for and an unbeaten half-century against Mumbai Indians, de Klerk began with two wickets off her first two deliveries. Kiran Navgire fell first when she heaved a length ball to cow corner, while Shweta Sehrawat was brilliantly caught at backward point by Reddy. Warriorz were in all sorts of trouble at 50 for 5.
This was the perfect fire-and-ice combination on paper. But on Monday, they were both mellower and batted risk-free for much of their unbeaten 93-run partnership. Deandra Dottin signalled a change of intent when she went after Patil in her third over – the 15th – by muscling a length ball for six over long-on. That galvanised both batters to break free; Deepti Sharma gave the perfect finish by going after Patil in a 15-run final over that helped them finish with 143.
With two rookies in their top four, RCB could’ve chosen to play safe by having Gautami Naik partner Mandhana. But they took the aggressive route, and Harris justified that decision by muscling a 22-ball half-century as RCB wiped out 78 in the powerplay alone.
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