Eindhoven is in the grip of its third official heatwave this year, with the temperature topping 30 Celsius for the third day in a row, weather bureau Weerplaza said.

Brabant, Overijssel, Gelderland and Noord-Limburg are all set to break the 30 Celsius barrier today, Weerplaza said. On Tuesday, when the temperature will top 30 Celsius nationwide, it will be the second official heat wave of the year.

There have only been three previous national heatwaves in a single year since official records began in 1901 – in 1941, 2006 and 2018.

Wednesday too will be warm, with possible thunderstorms and it will turn cooler on Thursday when the likelihood of rain will also increase.The KNMI’s long-term forecast into September sees a 70% chance of temperatures below the seasonal average.

Meanwhile, the hot, sunny weather brought thousands of people to look at the heather fields in bloom in the Veluwe region at the weekend. Hundreds of acres of heath are now filled with purple heather, which failed to appear last year because of the drought.