France records 5,764 excess deaths during June heatwave, highest mortality rate since 2003
The toll, reported by the national health agency on Wednesday, is the highest since the devastating 2003 heatwave and comes as southern Europe endures another spell of extreme temperatures.
Death toll and agency report
Santé Publique France said on Wednesday that 5,764 more deaths than expected were recorded between 17 June and 2 July, an excess mortality rate of 36%. The figure sharply revises an earlier estimate of 2,025 given by Health Minister Stéphanie Rist in late June. The agency based its calculation on 21,674 deaths from all causes in heat-affected regions, against a statistically modelled baseline of 15,910.
The excess mortality among people aged 15 and older was unprecedented.
The toll is the highest during a French heatwave since the catastrophic episode of 2003, which killed around 15,000 people. It also exceeds the 5,722 excess deaths recorded over the entire summer of 2025.
- Minister's initial estimate
- 2025 deaths
- 2026 June heatwave
- 5764 deaths
- 2025 full summer
- 5722 deaths
- 2003 heatwave
- 15000 deaths
Who was most affected
About two-thirds of the excess deaths were people aged 75 or older, while less than a fifth were aged 45 to 64. Half of all excess deaths occurred in just three days, from 25 to 27 June. In the Paris region, deaths rose by 80% during the last week of June, the agency said. Four young children died across France after being trapped in hot cars, though this did not appear to affect official death rates for that age category.
Heatwave intensity and multiple events
France recorded its hottest June since records began in 1947, with temperatures spiking above 40°C in many places. The average temperatures on 24 and 25 June were the highest ever recorded in the country, all months combined. Three heatwaves have swept across France since May; an uncommonly early first wave that month caused at least 300 excess deaths. The soaring temperatures also dried up riverbeds and sparked wildfires, including one that ravaged a tenth of the UNESCO-listed forest of Fontainebleau outside Paris.
- Heatwave begins, excess mortality period starts
- Highest average temperature ever recorded in France
- Peak mortality period starts; half of excess deaths occur by June 27
- Heatwave and excess mortality monitoring period ends
Broader European extreme weather
The announcement came as firefighters in Spain battled one of the country's largest ever wildfires in the Guadalajara region north of Madrid. The blaze burned about 32,000 hectares, forced the evacuation of 1,200 people from 34 villages and confinement orders in 14 others. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, visiting the area, said Spain had already suffered 22 major wildfires this year, four times more than in the same period of 2025, and that more than 100,000 hectares had burned.
We must raise public awareness and we not trivialise the climate emergency.
Climate change link
Scientists say human-driven climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of heatwaves, droughts and wildfires. Europe is the world's fastest-warming continent. Of the 53 heatwaves recorded in France since 1947, half have occurred since 2010, according to the national met office Météo-France. The agency said final mortality figures linked to the June heatwave would be published in the autumn.
