France’s heatwaves toll 1,500 lives

PARIS: Two heatwaves that hit France this summer claimed more than 1,500 more lives, Health Minister Agnes Buzyn said Sunday. But that toll was significantly lower than the disastrous summer of 2003, when an estimated 15,000 people died during an August heatwave. “We have 1,500 deaths recorded more than the average for these months, so that´s 10 times fewer deaths than the 2003 heatwave,” Buzyn told French radio. This year´s heatwaves hit France in June and July, with a new record temperature of 46 degrees Celsius (114.8 degrees Fahrenheit) recorded in the south on June 28. While the 2003 heatwave lasted 20 days in all, this year´s lasted for 18, in two separate heatwaves, the second covering a large part of France, Buzyn added.