EUROPE IS SET to feel the heat as a sizzling heatwave is expected to bring temperatures as high as 40 degrees Celsius to parts of the continent next week.

Forecasters say a wave of hot air coming from the Maghreb in north Africa and Spain will push temperatures up from this weekend, before hitting a peak in the middle of the week.

Spain’s meteorological agency Aemet issued a “yellow alert” for severe weather on Sunday, and says it expects to see a “hotter than usual” summer like last year.

In Germany, forecasters are predicting temperatures of up to 37 degrees Celsius on Tuesday and 38 degrees on Wednesday, with similar heat also expected in Belgium and Switzerland.

Meanwhile, the British Met Office said it was particularly concerned that the heatwave could trigger “violent storms” and warned Britons to expect “hot, humid and unstable” weather.

Greece will be one of the countries most affected by the heatwave, with temperatures hitting as high as 39 degrees Celsius this weekend.

And in France, meteorologist Francois Gourand said the heatwave is “unprecedented for the month of June” and will no doubt beat previous heat records.

It will recall the summer of 2003, when the country suffered an intense heatwave that led to the deaths of nearly 15,000 mostly elderly people.

Starting on Tuesday, France will see temperatures from 35 to 40 degrees Celsius, which will remain high at night offering little respite from the heat.

“Since 1947, only the heatwave of 18 to 28 June, 2005, was as intense,” said Meteo France, adding the scorching weather would probably last a minimum of six days.

The heatwave shows the impact of climate change on the planet, and such weather conditions are likely to become more frequent, meteorologists said.

However, temperatures in Ireland are expected to be a little cooler and conditions will not be the same as the heatwave seen this same time last year, but it is still expected to reach as high as 24 degrees in parts next week.

With reporting from - © AFP 2019.