(France heatwave. Photo by TRT World)
Health officials said on Wednesday that 5,764 more fatalities than typical occurred in France during a record-breaking heatwave last month, calling the extra mortality among those 15 and older “unprecedented.”
They said that it was the nation’s highest excess mortality rate during a heatwave since a catastrophic period of extreme heat in 2003 that claimed the lives of about 15,000 people.
Since May, France has experienced three heatwaves, the most recent of the more common extreme weather events that scientists have connected to human-caused climate change.
In a nation where many homes, schools, and hospitals lack air conditioning and are not built for extreme heat, the skyrocketing temperatures caused chaos.
Additionally, they have caused riverbeds to dry out and started wildfires, such as the one that destroyed a tenth of the large Fontainebleau forest outside of Paris, which is listed by UNESCO.
According to Sante Public France, the additional deaths that occurred between June 17 and July 2 of this year were caused by “all causes,” none of which were directly related to the heat.
The final numbers will be released in the fall.
In contrast, between June and mid-September of previous year, the nation recorded 5,722 excess deaths associated with high temperatures.
Approximately two-thirds of the excess fatalities that occurred last month were individuals 75 years of age or older, whereas less than a fifth were between the ages of 45 and 64.
In just three days, from June 25 to June 27, half died.
Paris deaths are on the rise.
With a heatwave this month that saw temperatures soar beyond 40C in numerous locations, France experienced its hottest June since records started in 1947.
June 24 and 25, 2026, had the highest average temperatures in French history for the entire month.
After reporting last week that the number of deaths in the Paris region doubled over the week of June 22 to 28, Sante Public France reported an 80% increase.
Four young youngsters in France perished during that final week of June after becoming stuck in scorching autos.
Official death rates for that age group, however, did not seem to be impacted by this.
An unusually early May heatwave claimed at least 300 more lives than usual.
According to scientists, the intensity of the heatwave that ravaged Europe in late June was “unequivocally” driven by human-induced climate change.
According to the national meteorological organization Meteo-France, half of the 53 heatwaves that were reported nationwide between 1947 and late June have happened since 2010.