More than 7,300 excess deaths have been recorded in France over the historically hot summer as Europe grapples with worsening heatwaves, wildfires and droughts, public health authorities said Wednesday. France has suffered a record-breaking 52 days of heatwaves since mid-June, an AFP analysis found.
Issued on: 19/08/2026
By: FRANCE 24
France experienced more than 7,300 excess deaths during heatwaves so far this year, health authorities said Wednesday, as the country has also endured a record number of hot days since mid-June, according to an AFP analysis.
France has been hit by three summer heatwaves in quick succession: a 14-day spell in June, 16 days in July and another lasting 22 days that began in late July and has yet to be officially declared over as of August 18.
Together they mean the country – parts of which are ill-equipped to deal with heat, and where air-conditioning is scarce – has endured a record 52 days of heatwaves since mid-June, according to the AFP analysis.
France's public health agency on Wednesday said it had recorded 1,243 more deaths than usual between July 2 and 22.
That added to the 5,764 excess deaths recorded from June 17 to 30, and 300 deaths identified so far during the year's first period of high temperatures in late May, for a total of 7,307.
Nearly three-quarters of the extra deaths "concern people aged 75 and over", though they affected "all age groups from 45 and over", the health ministry said.
The deaths were due to all causes and cannot yet be definitively attributed to the heat, the agency said. Final figures are expected in the autumn.
The figures came as an AFP analysis of data from the national weather service Météo-France showed the number of days of heatwaves this year far exceeds the 33 heatwave days recorded in 2022 and the 22 days seen during the deadly summer of 2003.
The country has had only two periods of respite, lasting three and eight days respectively, since the first heatwave began on June 17.
Beyond France, western Europe experienced its hottest start to summer on record, with recurring heatwaves in June and July causing widespread drought and devastating wildfires fuelled by human-driven climate change.
Second-longest recorded heatwave
France has recorded more heatwave days in 2026 than in any other year since records began in 1947.
The previous standout year, 2022, also saw three separate heatwaves, but their combined duration was almost 20 days shorter than this year's total.
READ MOREIn pictures: Drought exposes World War II ships, strands boats as Europe’s river levels plunge
Extreme heat contributed to more than 15,000 deaths in France in 2003, but the main heatwave was concentrated over about two weeks in August, following a less severe week-long episode in June.
The August 2003 heatwave nevertheless remains the most severe observed to date – based on an indicator combining heat duration and intensity.
But 2026 has set another milestone, with June 24 and 25 the hottest days ever recorded on average across mainland France, according to the national temperature indicator, which combines daytime and nighttime readings from 30 reference weather stations.
The indicator reached 30°C, surpassing the previous record set in 2003.
The heatwave that began in late July has meanwhile become the second-longest recorded nationwide.
At 22 days and counting, it is just short of the 23-day heatwave recorded in July 1983.
More than half of the 54 heatwaves France has experienced since 1947 have occurred since 2010.
Météo-France defines a national heatwave as a period lasting several days during which temperatures are significantly higher than normal.
A heatwave begins when the indicator reaches or exceeds 25.3°C for one day and the national average temperature remains at or above 23.4°C for at least three consecutive days.
It ends when it drops below 23.4°C for at least three days in a row or falls briefly below 22.4°C.
A spell of unusually warm weather in May, for example, was not intense enough to meet France's threshold for a heatwave.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
Heat linked to around 14,000 deaths in Germany so far this year
20.08.2026, DPA
Around 14,000 people in Germany are estimated to have died in connection with periods of extreme heat so far this year, the country's public health institute said on Thursday.
That corresponds to almost 17 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants, according to the latest report by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) on heat-related mortality, which covers the period from April 6 to August 9.
The number so far this year is already significantly higher than the totals for most entire years. Over the past decade, particularly high numbers were recorded in 2018, with an estimated 9,400 heat-related deaths, and 2019, with 7,600.
The RKI said its estimates are conservative, meaning the actual number of heat-related deaths this year could be even higher.
Last week, the institute estimated the number at 12,500. The figure can be revised retrospectively.
Most deaths among people aged 85 and over
The largest number of estimated deaths, 7,040, occurred among people aged 85 and over. Around 3,450 deaths were recorded among those aged 75 to 84 and 2,170 among people aged 65 to 74.
A severe heatwave at the end of June accounts for a large proportion of this year's estimated heat-related deaths.
Of the estimated 14,000 deaths so far this year, around 9,600 occurred in the week from June 22 to 28 alone, according to the RKI.
Temperatures approached 40 degrees Celsius in many parts of Germany during that period.
No comments:
Post a Comment