The commuters who clutched hand-held fans as they trudged through stiflingly hot London underground stations found little relief on Wednesday. Parisians dangled their legs in public fountains, desperate for a way to cool down. In Vatican City, sweat beaded on the foreheads of people gathered for a papal audience in St. Peter’s Square.
Extreme heat is becoming Europe’s new summer normal, even in parts of the region, like Britain, where it was once a rarity. Countries ill-equipped to deal with the soaring temperatures are struggling to cope, with aging infrastructure and a scarcity of air-conditioning. Across the continent, the heat is upending daily life.
Record temperatures were documented in a number of places this week. As the mercury climbed steadily higher on Wednesday, train cancellations caused travel chaos for some, shuttered schools early and caused some hospitals in England to cancel elective procedures.
