Four people died in Spain, two in France and two in Italy as an early summer heatwave continued to grip much of Europe on Wednesday, triggering health alerts and forest fires and forcing the closure of a nuclear reactor at a Swiss power plant.

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At least five deaths have been reported as Europe swelters in a heatwave that has put municipal and health officials in several countries on alert. Two men died on the beaches of the Italian Mediterranean island of Sardinia on Wednesday due to heat-induced illness.

Wildfires continued to rage on the western coast of Turkey as more than 50,000 people have been evacuated from impacted areas. England also had its warmest June on record, according to the Met Office, while the UK saw the second warmest June since records began in 1884.

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 blaze that broke out late on Tuesday created an enormous thick plume of ash and smoke that rose 14,

LONDON (Reuters) -Wildfires have killed two people in Spain and two others have died in France because of a heatwave that has gripped Europe and forced the closure of a nuclear reactor at a Swiss power plant.