The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has confirmed what anyone who stepped outside in England this summer already suspected: heatwaves are getting deadlier. The number of excess deaths caused by heatwaves so far this year has almost doubled compared to the same period in 2025, reaching 2,877 during the May and June heatwaves. That's nearly double the figure reported for the entire June-to-August period last year.

Specifically, an estimated 753 deaths were linked to the 24-27 May heatwave, while a staggering 2,124 were tied to the 21-28 June event. The UKHSA notes these figures are still "interim" but ominously adds that they are "already approaching the annual record reported in 2022."

The June heatwave was so intense it triggered an unprecedented three consecutive days of red warnings from the UKHSA and the Met Office - warnings that explicitly state there is a danger to life for everyone, though the young, the old, and those with underlying conditions are most at risk.

In response, experts have issued their own urgent call: cut greenhouse gas emissions and actually protect people from the global heating we've been warned about for decades. You know, the obvious thing.