Barcelona recorded its hottest month of June since records started over a century ago, Spain's national weather service said on Tuesday as Europe remained in the grip of the first major heat wave this summer.

Europe's continuing heat wave on Wednesday helped fuel a deadly wildfire in Spain while the European Union presented plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions under scorching temperatures.

The worst heat was felt in southern Europe, while punishing temperatures were forecast to reach 104 degrees Fahrenheit in Paris and remain unusually high in Belgium and the Netherlands.