ISTANBUL

Europe on Thursday began to show relief from the record-breaking heat wave that has been sweeping the continent through the week, while high temperatures partly remain.

France began to see slightly lower temperatures on Thursday, although the national weather service Meteo-France still expects highs between 32°C and 36°C (around 90°F to 97°F).

Meteo-France lifted the red alert on Wednesday evening, while 17 departments are expected to remain on orange heat wave alert on Thursday and Friday.

In Spain, the heat wave is expected to end as of Thursday while the high temperatures persist, according to the Spanish daily El Pais.

Spain’s weather service AEMET warns of possible highs reaching 40°C (104°F) and storms, with orange alerts still in effect in certain regions.

Temperatures in the UK and Belgium are also expected to drop below 30°C (86°F), with showers forecast across both countries.

According to Italian news agency ANSA, the heat could still peak at 40°C (104°F) in Italy, and it is also expected in Portugal, where 12 districts remain on yellow alert.

In the meantime, a series of wildfires broke out Wednesday across Greece, which has been experiencing a heat wave since the beginning of the week.

The wildfire in eastern Crete continues to rage, prompting the evacuation of over 1,500 residents and tourists.

As Europe endures a record-breaking heat wave this week, at least 10 people have died due to the extreme temperatures.

In Spain, four deaths were reported—two in the Catalonia fire on Tuesday and two others on Wednesday linked to the heat.

In France, an elderly person in Grenoble and a homeless man in Besancon were found dead amid the high temperatures on Tuesday.

According to ANSA, four people have also died across Italy due to the intense heat.