France has reported around 1,000 additional deaths following a record-breaking heatwave that swept the country last week. This period included 11 days of the hottest temperatures since records began, including a day that broke a record set just the previous day, marking the hottest-ever day for the nation.
The extreme heat has overwhelmed mortuaries in Paris and the immediate region, leaving funeral directors struggling to find space for bodies. Undertakers have reported receiving panicked calls from families, retirement homes, and police seeking refrigerated storage. Meanwhile, doctors and nurses on the ground remain under intense pressure and fear more fatalities in the coming days.
These events follow an unseasonal five-day heatwave in May, which caused at least 300 more deaths than expected. France's public health agency reported that the May heat exposed a population not yet accustomed to high temperatures during a period when school and work activities were still in full swing. Initial estimates from the national health agency listed hundreds more deaths per day compared with the daily death rate in previous months.