A RECORD number of people have died due to soaring temperatures in Spain this summer according to the daily mortality monitoring system (MoMo).
MoMo, which has been operating since 2015, says there have been 5,232 heat-related deaths since mid-May, with 2,147 of them in August.
The figures of the past two deadliest summers recorded over the last 11 years have been surpassed by the latest MoMo statistics.
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Over the same period in 2022, there were 4,789 heat-related fatalities, with 3,035 deaths caused by high temperatures the following year.
MoMo works out a figure by making a statistical projection based on analysis maximum temperature thresholds and deaths logged by civil registries.
The numbers though are still way below the summer of 2003, when around 13,000 lost their lives in Spain- prompting the introduction of a Ministry of Health plan to counter the effects of heat on people.
There has also been a big increase over the period in home air conditioning installations.
The Ministry’s annual heat plan kicks in on May 15, and from that date up to till Monday, MoMo has estimated a total of 5,232 deaths.
July closed with 2,025 deaths compared to 1,060 in 2025, making it the second-highest July for mortality since 2022, when 2,217 deaths were calculated as a result of heat.
August 2026 registered 2,147 deaths as of Monday, a number similar to last year, which is the most lethal August since MoMo figures began in 2015 with 2,172 fatalities.
The vast majority of deaths this summer, as in all fatalities, occured in those over 65 years of age (5,048), especially in those over 85, who account for 62% of the total with 3,256.
Likewise, women, accounting for 60% of the total, are the most affected.
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