France deaths rose by 30% during heatwave

PARIS – France endured a rise of nearly 30 per cent in the number of deaths recorded during the week of June 22, the peak of a record-breaking heatwave that battered the country, the public health authority said on July 3.

Public Health France said in a new report there had been “an increase of 29.1 per cent, corresponding to 2,025 additional deaths compared with the previous week” while noting that the figure was probably “an underestimate”.

The number of deaths increased by 62 per cent in the Paris region during the week starting on June 22, the report said. A similar spike has been reported in the Pays de la Loire region.

Some French politicians have denounced what they call the authorities’ inadequate measures to help France face rising temperatures. The Greens on July 2 filed a no-confidence motion against the government of Sebastien Lecornu.

In June, France experienced a record-breaking heatwave which lasted around 11 days and saw temperatures climb above 40 deg Celsius in many places.

Around 15,000 people died in France during a severe heatwave in 2003, with many elderly people dying in nursing homes.

The June heatwave is considered more intense, but authorities say its consequences have been less severe.

“It will probably not be comparable,” Health Minister Stephanie Rist said on July 3.

Nicolas Revel, director-general of the Paris public hospital system, has said he expected the death toll from the June heatwave to be lower than that of 2003, but “probably” higher than an episode in 2025 that claimed 5,700 lives. AFP