Two children, aged 2 and 4, found dead amid heatwave in France

BarcelonaFirefighters found two children, aged 2 and 4, dead this Monday from cardiovascular arrest inside the family car. The cause of death is still uncertain, but the prosecutor for the Vaucluse department, in the southeast of the country, points to the intense heat. The mother has been attended by medical services, but the police have not yet taken her statement.

These deaths add to the three recorded this weekend in the southwest of the country, also due to high temperatures. This time, however, it affected two men and one woman, all between 80 and 95 years old. In addition, last weekend, at least thirteen people drowned, according to Civil Protection.

A historic heatwave

France is facing a heatwave that could register the highest temperatures since the Second World War. Today, 49 out of 100 departments are on red alert for high temperatures, and tomorrow it will be 54, a record. The national meteorological service, Météo France, has warned that the heatwave will last until the end of the week. This Monday, the record of 29.4 °C average across the country is expected to be surpassed, a temperature only recorded in July 2019 and August 2003, the year in which the heat killed 15,000 people across France.

During the night from Sunday to Monday, several records for night-time temperatures for the month of June were already broken, such as 24.8 °C in Tours or 25.3 °C in Bordeaux. Minimum temperatures could reach 27 or 28 degrees tonight in Brittany, a territory that until now was considered a climatic refuge, as it was not affected by major heatwaves. During these days, peaks of 43 °C are expected in Bordeaux, 40 °C in Paris or Toulouse, or 39 °C in Biarritz.

The heatwave has caused disruptions on various train lines, either because they are not equipped with air conditioning or because the expansion of the rails makes circulation impossible. It has also forced the closure of 845 schools and high schools, adding to the 1800 that have adapted class schedules to avoid the hottest hours of the afternoon.