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France has seen 301 drownings since 19 June, a government minister has said, linking the sharp rise in deaths compared to last year to the prolonged heatwaves<\/b>.<\/b><\/p>\n
Sports and Youth Minister Marina Ferrari told France Inter radio the number of deaths – a 14% hike on 2025 – was a “tragic toll”.<\/p>\n
France, Spain and Italy have been hit by heatwaves, which have triggered massive wildfires that scorched thousands of hectares of land.<\/p>\n
Ferrari said people have been taking risks by going into the water, adding: “Many deadly accidents have occurred in areas that are not authorised or supervised for swimming.”<\/p>\n
She said a number of the drownings were recorded in “open water, in canals for example”.<\/p>\n
Ferrari said the government was working with regional authorities “to improve swimming areas and make things safer”.<\/p>\n
Speaking on Friday, she added that “many drownings, particularly among the elderly, occurred in individual pools”. <\/p>\n
The minister said that sudden immersion in cold water on a hot day could cause shock, and in some cases “people can also exceed their physical capabilities”.<\/p>\n
In June, Ferrari warned that too many people were trying to cool off in rivers and canals without necessarily taking the risks into account.<\/a><\/p>\n Climate change is driving up temperatures around the world – but particularly in Europe. <\/p>\n It is the fastest warming continent, heating up twice as fast as the global average, according to the Copernicus climate service., external<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n