France records 1,000 excess deaths during record-breaking heatwave

France has recorded 1,000 excess deaths during the blistering heatwave sweeping Europe, the ​public health agency said on Sunday, warning that ‌the true figure was likely to be higher.

Detailing its preliminary count of excess deaths, Sante Publique said most of the ​fatalities involved older people and that it expected ​the mortality rate to rise as more information ⁠became available about deaths in residential care and homes.

Europeans ​have been enduring blistering conditions during a heatwave that has ​been linked to dozens of deaths - shattering records, disrupting power generation and damaging infrastructure.

Scientists have said the heatwave, which began on ​June 20, was the worst recorded in Europe, ​where the climate is changing faster than the global average.

EXTREME HEAT EASES ‌IN ⁠FRANCE

The heatwave has been moving east. But while France's weather agency said the extreme heat had diminished in most parts of the country, some areas in the ​northeast were still ​under a ⁠heatwave advisory.

Health Minister Stephanie Rist told La Tribune newspaper that the impact of ​the heatwave could linger for as long ​as 10 ⁠days after the weather had ebbed.

"The episode is not finished," she told broadcaster BFM.

Most of the deaths involved ⁠people ​aged 65 and older, though the ​health effects of the extreme heat affected all categories of the population, ​Sante Publique said.

-Reuters