A searing heatwave taking hold across Europe is expected to see temperatures reach 45C in some parts of the continent later this week, prompting fears that bees could be wiped out by the extreme weather.

An “enormous” bubble of warm air from the Sahara has triggered emergency measures in France, where the conditions have been linked to the deaths of three swimmers on south coast beaches.

A 70-year-old man was believed to have been a victim of “thermic shock” after coming into contact with the water during the heat spell on Tuesday, according to French news outlet LCI. Two other people, a 62-year-old woman and a 75-year-old man, reportedly died in similar circumstances.

French farming union MODEF said beekeepers were currently having to feed their bees with syrup and warned: “The heatwave that is coming could really hit [honey] harvests.”

“In the hives, there is nothing to eat, beekeepers are having to feed them with syrup because they risk dying from hunger,” the union stated in French media reports. “For honey producers the season risks being catastrophic. Bees are collecting nothing!”

Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures Show all 30 1 /30 Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A zookeeper sprays water on Asian elephants at the Berlin Zoo on 25 June EPA Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures People cool off in a swimming pool in Hannover, Germany on 25 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A woman sits on a lawn chair in Lake Wanasee in Berlin on 25 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures An orangutan takes shelter from the sun under a blanket at the Schoenbrunn Zoo in Vienaa on 25 June AP Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures Visitors shelter from the heat under the Umbrella Sky Project, an art installation in Aix-en-Provence, France on 28 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A model boat drives past a couple as they bathe in a lake in Ertingen, Germany on 26 June AP Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A personal care worker visits the home of an elderly person to help him avoid heatstroke and dehydration during the heatwave in Clermont-Ferrand, France. The heat watch system has been implemented in France, meaning that vulnerable people will have increased access to aid for heat-related ailments AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A zookeeper applies sun cream to a tapir at the Serengeti Park in Hanover, Germany on 26 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures One motorist in Brandenburg, Germany was stopped by police on account of his tactic for keeping cool on 25 June Brandenburg Police Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A German Police helicopter pours water over a forest fire near Lieberoser Heide in Germany on 25 June Reuters Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures Children jump into the water of Lake Geneva to cool off in Lutry, Switzerland on 25 June AP Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures Parisians cool off in the fountains at the Trocadero Esplanade on 24 June AP Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A polar bear cools off in the Gelsenkirchen zoo in western Germany on 25 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A woman plays in the in the fountains at the Trocadero Esplanade on 24 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures Children play in Lake Walensee in Switzerland on the evening of 25 June EPA Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A refreshments table of water and syrups is laid out at an old folks home in Le Bouscat, France. Due to the heat, extra care provisions are available for the vulnerable in France Reuters Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A meerkat reaches for frozen food at the Berlin Zoo on 25 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures People ride down the Old Danube in Vienna on 25 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A boy plunges into a swimming pool in Essen, Germany on 25 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A pigeon drinks from a fountain in Mulhouse, France on 25 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures Parisians rest in the shade down by the Seine on 26 June AP Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A boy jumps into the canal near Reims in northeastern France on 25 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures People bathe at Amager in Copenhagen, Denmark on 25 June EPA Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A walrus feeds on an ice cake filled with frozen fish as her baby looks on i Hamburg Zoo, Germany on 26 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures Children play in a fountain in Nice, France on 26 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A couple steers an electric boat down the Old Danube in Vienna on 25 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A polar bear cools off at the Hamburg Zoo in Germany AP Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures A woman cools of in a water fountain on 26 June AFP/Getty Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures People lounge on the shore of the Baths of Paquis in Genevs on 25 June EPA Europe seeks relief in scorching Saharan heatwave: In pictures People enjoy the weather in Lake Walensee in Switzerland on 25 June EPA

The blast of scorching heat has led some meteorologists to predict new June records will be set in several European countries in the coming days.

While one Spanish forecaster “hell is coming”, meteorologists in Germany – where air temperatures in the southwest are expected to reach 43C on Wednesday – warned of “extreme thermal stress”.

France’s national forecaster Meteo issued an orange alert, the second highest level of weather warning. The agency has predicted highs of 45C for the towns of Nimes and Carpentras on Friday.

Authorities in Paris are setting up “cool rooms” in municipal buildings, opening pools for late-night swimming and installing extra drinking fountains.

Earlier this week the French government announced it would suspend exams sat by 14 and 15-year-olds, prompting accusations from the opposition that it was overreacting.

“This isn’t scaremongering,” health minister Agnes Buzyn told a news conference.

Tourists in Rome struggle in the June heat (AFP/Getty Images)

Emergency services in Germany urged the public to look out for young children, the elderly and people with compromised immune systems, while authorities in the eastern state of Brandenburg have warned of the high risk of forest fires.

In the Italian coastal town of Eloro, in Sicily, 41 cars were engulfed in flames on Monday after a fire broke out close to a car park where beachgoers had left their vehicles.

The fire brigade said it was not clear what caused it but hot temperatures and dry terrain caused the fire to spread rapidly.

Scientists said heatwaves in Europe are becoming more frequent, linking the intense temperatures to climate change. Stefan Rahmstorf of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research said “monthly heat records all over the globe occur five times as often today as they would in a stable climate.”

Tourists in Rome and Paris scaled back their sightseeing in sweltering temperatures on Tuesday, dousing themselves at fountains as the heatwave took hold.

“It’s really, really uncomfortable right now. The heat is really high, I think it’s over 35 degrees. So for us, doing a tour of two hours and a half, three hours, is really, really difficult,” said Ayelen Rozitchner, a 32-year-old Argentinean tour guide to the French capital.

In the UK, highs of 31C could be seen for eastern parts of England this weekend, while temperatures will be in the upper 20s for revellers at the Glastonbury Festival.