MOZOM vergelijkt

MOZOM compares: code red, heat wave or new warning language?

MOZOM vergelijkt Media 25 juni 2026 om 18:52

AI photo of old newspaper, water, fan, thermometer and modern red weather warnings on laptop and phone as image of heat wave and code red.

Source: MOZOM vergelijkt
MOZOM headline: MOZOM compares: code red, heat wave or new warning language?
Original headline: NOS, KNMI, RIVM, CBS and old heat archives show how the same heat from heat wave and water advice turned into weather alarm and impact analysis
Author: MOZOM-redactie
Date: 25 juni 2026 om 18:52
Subject: Comparison of the first Dutch code red for heat with previous severe heat waves in 2003, 2006 and 2019, when the language was mainly heat wave, Heat Plan, drinking advice and code orange.

Summary of the original report

On June 25, 2026, the NOS reports that code red due to heat has been issued in the Netherlands for the first time. The KNMI warns of extreme heat, high humidity, heat force 9 to 10, tropical nights and health complaints that can also affect healthy people. The warning is not only meteorological: the KNMI also mentions impact, social consequences and a weather impact team with parties such as the National Crisis Center, police, fire brigade, ProRail and Rijkswaterstaat. That is a different warning sign than with older heat waves. In 2006, the Netherlands experienced two heat waves; According to the KNMI, July 2006 was the warmest month since measurements began in 1706 and CBS reported approximately a thousand additional deaths due to heat in July. Yet the news did not mention code red for heat at the time, because the current color code system has only been visible in the KNMI archive since 2010 and the National Heat Plan was only set up in 2007. Also in 2019, when the Netherlands officially exceeded 40 degrees for the first time with 40.7 degrees in Gilze-Rijen, according to later climate adaptation sources, code orange and not code red applied. In 2024, the RIVM even wrote that code red for heat had not yet been declared in the Netherlands.

Striking in this message

It is striking that code red is not a pure thermometer word. The KNMI writes that the meteorological guidelines for code orange and red can be the same and that impact is leading. As a result, a heat wave that was previously reported as severe summer weather can now be framed as a social risk situation. That doesn't necessarily make the warning nonsense, but it does change how citizens feel about the news.

Less visible context

It is less visible that the Netherlands has built up the heat warning system after previous heavy summers. The heat of 2003 and 2006 resulted in excess mortality and healthcare demands; this was followed by Heat Plan, local heat plans, code colors, heat power and scenario exercises. In the past, people often said: it's getting hot, drink enough, keep an eye on the elderly and children, adjust school or work. Now people also say: the system must be prepared, emergency services must be able to run, events must be assessed and infrastructure can become vulnerable.

Possible message behind the news

A possible message is that the media not only report how hot it gets, but also what social meaning the heat acquires. Code red turns temperature into an assignment: adjust your behavior, organize care, limit risks and take government language seriously.

Neutral conclusion

The neutral conclusion: no, in previous heat waves, code red for heat was usually not discussed. Sometimes because the system did not yet exist, sometimes because code orange or the Heat Plan was the appropriate language. But the heat itself was not harmless. The difference is in framing and organization: from heat wave message to risk communication.