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Drowning deaths soar in France as Europe buckles in peak of heatwave
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Drowning deaths soar in France as Europe buckles in peak of heatwave

BBC News · Jun 23, 2026, 10:53 AM · Also reported by 4 other sources

Key takeaways

  • Although public bathing has been allowed at the Canal Saint-Martin in Paris, the government has warned of swimming in unsupervised areas
  • "It's not something to be taken lightly, going swimming in unsupervised areas during a heatwave," sports and youth minister Marina Ferrari told French radio.
  • France, along with Spain and Italy, have been hardest hit by the heatwave so far.

Why this matters: a developing story that could shape the day's news cycle.

Although public bathing has been allowed at the Canal Saint-Martin in Paris, the government has warned of swimming in unsupervised areas

Forty people have drowned in heatwave-related deaths in France since last Thursday, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has said, as temperatures hit record levels in several major cities and the heatwave reaches a peak in several European countries.

"It's not something to be taken lightly, going swimming in unsupervised areas during a heatwave," sports and youth minister Marina Ferrari told French radio.

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