[1] The first heat wave, in late June, killed over 567 people,[2] and according to meteorologists it was caused by high pressure and winds from the Sahara Desert affecting large parts of the continent.

[6] In late July, a second heat wave occurred, during which all-time records were broken by 3 °C (5.4 °F) in Belgium, by 2.1 °C (3.8 °F) in Germany and the Netherlands, by 0.3 °C (0.5 °F) in Luxembourg, and by 0.2 °C (0.4 °F) in the United Kingdom.

The deaths of 868 people in France and one person in Belgium were reported, along with thousands of animals when ventilation systems in barns were overwhelmed.

Due to high river water temperatures and sluggish flows, particularly in France and to some extent Germany, a number of thermal power stations that use once-through cooling and do not have cooling towers had to reduce output or shut down to avoid breaching environmental limits on river water temperature designed to protect aquatic life.

[7] The above-normal hot condition in June is caused by an anomalous long-lasting anticyclone in the upper troposphere, which advects warm air from the Sahel and Mediterranean region and enhances incoming solar radiation and surface turbulent fluxes.

The anomalous anticyclone results from an unusually-intensified British-Baikal Corridor pattern and a synoptic Rossby wave breaking event over Europe.

[8] The July heat wave was caused by a strong omega block,[9] consisting of hot, dry air from North Africa, trapped between cold storm systems.

During the period of hot weather, environmental officials warned of poor air quality levels, which would especially affect the young, elderly and people with respiratory illnesses.

[23][24] On the same day, passengers were evacuated from a Eurostar train that had broken down between Halle and Tubize, as many began to fall ill due to the extreme temperatures.

[31] Météo France issued an Orange Alert for much of the country due to exceptionally hot temperatures, excluding coastal regions, e.g. Brittany and the northern part of Hauts-de-France.

[6] Earlier, the highest temperature considered to have been reliably recorded during the heat wave was 45.9 °C (114.6 °F) by an automatic weather station in Gallargues-le-Montueux, also on 28 June.

[33] In July 2019, France experienced its second heat wave in less than a month, beating several regional and national temperature records.

[48] This reduced French nuclear power generation by around 5.2 gigawatts at a time of increased electricity demand due to the use of cooling devices.

[55] At the end of the heat wave, on the evening of 26 July, a maximum purple alert for storms was issued for three districts (Landkreise) of the Land Baden-Württemberg, namely Freudenstadt, Böblingen and Calw.

[68][69] In July in the Netherlands, an orange alert was put in place for the entire country due to the extreme heat.

[45][71][72] The West Frisian Islands was the only region for which no weather alert had been issued but there was a heatwave for the first time ever on Vlieland and Terschelling since measurements started in 1996.

[73] On 27 July, the KNMI ended the orange alert for South Holland, Zeeland, North Brabant and Limburg.

[73] On 22 July, ProRail announced code red for traffic controllers, as extra alertness was necessary for disturbances on the tracks and other problems due to heat.

[79] Many farm animals died as a result of the high temperatures, mainly due to ventilation systems failing.

[88] At Sømna-Kvaløyfjellet, a weather station on a coastal hill 302 m (991 ft) ASL in Nordland in Northern Norway (65°13′16″N 11°59′34″E / 65.2210062°N 11.9926825°E / 65.2210062; 11.9926825), the overnight low on 28 July did not go below 26.1 °C (79.0 °F), beating the previous national record for the warmest night of 25.5 °C (77.9 °F) recorded 6 degrees of latitude further south in Halden Municipality, south of Oslo, in July 1933.

[35] On 23 July, Public Health England renewed a heat warning for the whole of the United Kingdom, urging people to "keep hydrated, find shade and take protection against the sun".

[121] New local temperature records were set in towns and cities across the country on 25 July, including 31.6 °C (88.9 °F) in Edinburgh and 35.1 °C (95.2 °F) in Sheffield.

[123] Measures included painting railway tracks white to reduce the temperature of the steel, and cancelling services.

[124] Many heat-related incidents on the country's rail network caused widespread disruptions, especially affecting intercity services from London.

Damage to overhead line equipment occurred in Peterborough, Handsworth and Camden, as well as a trackside grass fire caused by cables snapping near West Hampstead.

[127][128] On 26 July, all but essential travel had been advised against, after the extreme heat and storms caused severe disruption to the rail network and airports.

East Midlands Trains services between Sheffield, Nottingham, Derby and London St Pancras were disrupted due to overhead wire damage from the heat of the previous day, and an emergency timetable was put in place.

[130] Several flights were cancelled and delayed from Heathrow, Gatwick and London City airports due to "extreme weather conditions across Europe".

[131] As of 1 August, the World Meteorological Organisation considered July 2019 to be at least tied for the hottest month ever recorded, based on global average temperature.

[132] This was confirmed on 5 August by EU Earth Observation Network, which found it 0.04 °C (0.072 °F) hotter than the previous record-holder, July 2016.