Spain records highest number of May heat-related deaths

Spain recorded its highest heat-related mortality for the month of May since records began in 2015, the Health Ministry said on Wednesday after many parts of Europe experienced record heat.

• According to estimates by Spain's daily mortality monitoring system, May 2026 recorded 101 deaths attributable to high temperatures, the highest figure for this month since the series began in 2015.

• The number is 3.6 times the average for May over the last decade, highlighting the significant health impact of extreme heat even before the start of northern hemisphere summer, the Health Ministry said.

• The monitoring system, or MoMo for short, estimates that 27,564 deaths were attributable to high temperatures in Spain between 2015 and 2025.

• 2022 was the worst year on record, with 4,789 deaths, followed by 2025 with 3,832.

• The risk of mortality rises by between 9.1% and 10.7% for each degree that temperatures exceed the health risk threshold.

-Reporting by Emma Pinedo; editing by Barbara Lewis/Reuters