France records around 1,000 excess deaths in heatwave: health agency

Alsharq Tribune- M.Essam

French health officials said Sunday there had been around 1,000 more deaths than expected during a record-breaking heatwave that has baked much of western Europe for days.

"Since June 24, approximately 1,000 additional deaths (unconsolidated figures) have been observed compared to the deaths recorded in previous months," Public Health France said in a statement.

The agency said areas under red alert for heat had been particularly badly affected, and 85 percent of the deaths had been those aged 65 and over.

The sharpest increases, the agency said, involved people dying at home, especially in the Ile-de-France region that includes Paris and its suburbs.

"This observation serves as a reminder of the need for measures of solidarity toward people who are isolated or experiencing profound loneliness, including in highly urbanised areas," the statement said.

The agency stressed that the figures were preliminary and were likely to be an underestimate. The extreme weather is being driven by atmospheric patterns that keep hot air trapped in place for days, with these factors worsened by global warming, experts say.

France's national temperature indicator -- an average of daytime and nighttime temperatures across 30 stations -- reached 29.8C on Tuesday, the hottest since measurements began in 1947.

The heat eased across France on Sunday after days of punishing temperatures that saw the mercury rising above 40C in many areas. Scientists have shown that recurring heatwaves are a clear marker of global warming, and warn they are set to become more frequent, longer and more intense, driven by humans' burning of fossil fuels.