Deaths and thousands without power in European heatwave

Western Europe is ⁠in the grip of a deadly, record-setting heatwave that has killed dozens of people, closed schools, slowed trains, knocked out electricity and forced farmers to harvest grain at night.

In France, which yesterday recorded its hottest day since records began nearly 80 years ago, authorities sought to restore electricity to thousands of homes hit by power cuts related to the extreme weather in the northwestern region of Brittany.

Healthcare centers and critical sites were being prioritized in the effort, ⁠with generators provided to tide over retirement homes after outages were blamed on a transformer incident.

"The incident was accidental and related to the current heatwave," officials said in a statement. "No one was injured."

Italy's health ministry issued its highest heat alert for 16 cities, from Florence and Milan, to Rome, Turin and Verona.