France bans drinking alcohol in public to counter brutal heat wave

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According to data from the International Energy Agency (IEA), only about 20% of European households have air conditioning. In fact, in some specific countries, it is even lower—dropping to around 10% or less in places like the UK and France.

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Recent Summer Figures: Extensive research tracking recent summer heatwaves (covering 32 European countries) shows that heat-related excess deaths remain consistently high:

2024: ~62,700 deaths
2023: ~50,800 deaths
2022: ~67,900 deaths

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France gritted its teeth Monday for a week of record-busting temperatures, sweltering in a heat wave combining daytime highs above 104 degrees Fahrenheit and sleep-robbing sweaty nights.

The national weather service, Meteo France, said most of the country — the largest in the European Union — is entering unrelenting conditions that aren’t forecast to ease before Friday.

Meteo France called the heat wave exceptionally intense, “similar to the August 2003 heat wave, but with a still uncertain duration.” France introduced a heat watch warning system after that heat wave, when the highest temperatures in over half a century caused an estimated 15,000 deaths, many of older people in apartments and retirement homes without air conditioning.

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Multiple towns in western and central France experienced their hottest night ever Sunday to Monday, Meteo France said.

Paris baked through its hottest night for June, not getting below 75.5 F. The French capital broke another June record with 99.9 F recorded Monday afternoon.

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A growing swath of France, spreading on Monday to more than half its regions, was under a “red alert” for heat, with areas forecast to suffer highs past 104 F and nights not dropping below 68 F.

Broadcasts on the Paris transport network urged commuters to hydrate. Medical specialists warned of the potentially deadly combination of drinking alcohol in extreme heat. Authorities cracked down on alcohol consumption in public.

Multiple drownings were reported as people sought relief in rivers, despite warnings about currents and other dangers.

Two children, aged 2 and 4, were found dead on Monday in their family’s car in a parking lot in the southern town of Carpentras, French media reported, quoting the public prosecutor’s office. Government messages warned parents not to leave children unattended in cars.

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