CAPITALS, 2nd July, 2025 (WAM) - Four people died in Spain, two in France and two in Italy as an early summer heatwave continues to grip much of Europe, triggering health alerts and forest fires and forcing the closure of a nuclear reactor at a Swiss power plant, according to Reuters.

Spanish officials said a wildfire in Catalonia had killed two people a day earlier, and authorities reported heatwave-linked deaths also in Extremadura and Cordoba.

France's energy minister reported two deaths linked to the heat, with 300 others taken to hospital.

Italy issued red alerts for 18 cities, while in Germany temperatures were forecast to peak at 40 degrees Celsius in some areas, making it the hottest day of the year.

Two men over the age of 60 died in separate incidents on the beach in Sardinia from the heat, ANSA news agency reported.

Weather forecaster Meteo France said red alerts remained for several areas of central France.

The risks were greatest for vulnerable members of the population, and Catherine Vautrin, France's health and families minister, said authorities should remain vigilant.

"In the coming days, we'll see the consequences, particularly on the most vulnerable, and I'm thinking particularly of the elderly," she said.

Italy, France and Germany warned of the risk of heavy storms due to excessive warming in unstable atmospheres. Violent storms in the French Alps late on Monday triggered mudslides, disrupting rail traffic between Paris and Milan.

The extreme heat would likely impact the region's economic growth, which was expected to slow by half a percentage point in 2025, Allianz Research said in a report, likening the financial toll of one day with temperatures exceeding 32 C to half a day of strikes.

Scientists say heatwaves have arrived earlier this year, spiking temperatures by up to 10 C (50 F) in some regions as warming seas encouraged the formation of a heat dome over much of Europe, trapping hot air masses.