The Directorate-General for Health as warned that since June 28th, mainland Portugal has recorded 69 excess deaths due to the hot weather.
“During the hot weather alert period that began on June 28th, 2025, excess mortality was detected, mostly among people aged 85 or over, with 69 excess deaths observed in mainland Portugal,” said the DGS.
According to the Icarus index (which estimates the impact of air temperatures on mortality) as of July 2nd, 2025, the health authority warns that “a significant impact of heat on mortality is expected to continue over the next three days, which could lead to an upward revision of excess mortality”.
The DGS highlights that extreme heat is a phenomenon known to have a potential negative impact on health, as a consequence of dehydration and/or decompensation of chronic diseases, among other factors.
Around a third of the weather stations in mainland Portugal exceeded or equaled their previous record highs for maximum temperatures for the month of June over the weekend, according to the IPMA.
On Sunday, a new absolute extreme was reached in Mora, Évora, for the month of June in mainland Portugal, with the meteorological station recording 46.6 degrees Celsius (ºC).
The 31 stations, out of a total of 90, where maximum temperatures were reached or exceeded were, in addition to Mora, Alvega with 46ºC (the last maximum was 45.4ºC), followed by Alvalade, Coruche, Tomar, Pegões, Avis, Mértola, Santarém, Amareleja, Reguengos, Beja, Proença a Nova, Zebreira, Alcoutim, Estremoz, Chaves, Cabeceira de Bastos, Moimenta da Beira, Arouca, Cabril, Zambujeira, Vila Real, Viseu, Pampilhosa da Serra, Vinhais, Lamas de Mouro, Foía and Montalegre, which reached 34.4ºC (the previous maximum had been 34ºC on 20 June 2003.
At Portalegre station, the previous absolute maximum minimum air temperature in June was also surpassed on Sunday, with 31.5ºC.
According to IPMA data, on Sunday, around 82% of meteorological stations recorded maximum air temperature values above 35°C and around 37% of meteorological stations reached maximum air temperature values above 40°C.
The 29th was the hottest day of the month with an average maximum temperature of 38.5°C (deviation from the monthly average of +11.8°C), and an average minimum temperature of 28.7°C (deviation from the monthly average of +8.4°C).
Source https://postal.pt/ - Photo courtesy of Depositphotos.com
