Western Europe swelters through record-breaking May heat wave, with U.K. and France logging highest temperatures ever recorded for the month

The U.K. reported its hottest-ever day for May at 35.1 degrees Celsius at Kew Gardens in southwest London on Tuesday, breaking a record of 34.8 C set at the same location Monday. France also logged its hottest-ever May day on Monday and then again on Tuesday, with temperatures predicted to reach as high as 39 C in some areas.

A "heat dome" of warm air from northern Africa is pushing temperatures well above normal levels for May across western Europe. A high-pressure system is trapping warm air over the region, and France's weather agency said the heat wave could last through the week.

At least seven deaths in France have been linked to the heat wave, including five drownings as people sought relief in water. Authorities in Britain reported four teen drownings in England since Sunday. Bob Ward from the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics said high temperatures will likely have killed "hundreds of people" mainly in overheated homes across the U.K., while billions of pounds will have been lost because workplaces are too hot and unproductive.