Heat wave in Europe tightened its grasp on the eastern parts of the continent on Monday as Slovakia recorded a new high in the country's temperature history. It is estimated that at least 1,300 excess deaths have been linked to the heat wave in Europe since June 21, as governments maintain health alerts.

It was Slovakia that set a new record in the country by reaching 40.5°С, while heat continued to affect Central and Eastern Europe. The situation improved a bit in some areas of France and other Western European countries, where for several days in a row there were record highs, but the problem remained acute in Hungary, Romania, and Ukraine.

According to the World Health Organization, the list of people killed by heat includes senior citizens, children trapped in hot cars, and those who drowned while attempting to get rid of heat in rivers and lakes. There have been 74 cases of drowning deaths in France since June 18, while Polish authorities registered 17 deaths because of drowning on Sunday only.

Ukraine introduced emergency electricity outages after soaring temperatures pushed power demand higher. Officials forecast temperatures between 35°C and 38°C and warned that the country's electricity network is under heavy pressure while repair work continues on infrastructure damaged during the war. Energy providers said the grid is operating close to its limits.

According to the World Weather Attribution group, the current event is Europe's most severe heat wave on record and would have been virtually impossible at this point in the summer without human-driven climate change. Researchers found that rising global temperatures have increased the likelihood and intensity of prolonged heat across the continent.

Forecasts showed around 130 million Europeans facing temperatures above 35°C on Monday, compared with nearly 190 million a day earlier. Although western Europe has started to cool, authorities across the region continue to advise residents to avoid outdoor activity during the hottest hours, drink water regularly, and check on older relatives and neighbours.

The French national weather forecasting agency has predicted the possibility of yet another bout of hot weather in the latter part of July. The funeral homes in some areas have also observed a rather higher occupancy level owing to the increase in deaths resulting from the heat wave.