Key points

• In mainland France, according to Météo-France, the summer of 2022 ranks as the second-hottest summer recorded in France since the beginning of the 20th century. The 2022 summer monitoring period was marked by three heatwave episodes, two of which placed departments along the Atlantic coast on red alert, and two successive episodes lasting about a dozen days in the Occitanie, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions. Furthermore, this summer was marked by other extreme weather phenomena such as drought, wildfires, thunderstorms, and a heatwave in the Mediterranean Sea. Regarding health monitoring, key figures include:

  • 2,816 excess deaths (+17%), all causes combined, were estimated during heatwave periods in metropolitan departments where biometeorological alert thresholds were exceeded (relative excess mortality observed in departments under red alert was higher than in other departments). The summer monitoring period shows the highest excess mortality since the implementation of the 2004 National Heat Wave Plan. The age group of 75 years and older accounts for the vast majority of these excess deaths, associated with a high relative excess mortality of +20%.

  • 2,060 emergency room visits and 680 SOS Médecins consultations for hyperthermia, dehydration, and hyponatremia (iCanicule indicator) were recorded in the departments where biometeorological alert thresholds were exceeded this summer.

• In Île-de-France, all departments in the region were placed by Météo-France under yellow or orange alerts during three periods: the first period (yellow-orange alert) occurred in June, the second (yellow-orange alert) in July, and the third (yellow alert only) in August 2022. During the first and third periods, no exceedances of biometeorological alert thresholds were observed despite the yellow or orange alerts. However, during the heatwave in July, exceedances of these thresholds were observed in six Île-de-France departments (75, 78, 92, 93, 94, 95). A significant impact on health was observed during this period:

  • An estimated 325 excess deaths from all causes occurred during this heatwave in the departments where biometeorological alert thresholds were exceeded (representing a relative excess mortality of +21%). Among these excess deaths, the vast majority (n=254) involved people aged 75 and older, representing a relative excess mortality of +27% in this age group.

  • 406 emergency room visits and 64 SOS Médecins calls for the iCanicule indicator were recorded during this period in the 6 departments affected by exceedances of biometeorological alert thresholds. All age groups were affected by these incidents, but primarily people aged 75 and older, who accounted for 52% of emergency room visits and 52% of SOS Médecins interventions for iCanicule. The hospitalization rate following an emergency room visit for the iCanicule indicator during this episode was 54% across all age groups and 69.5% among those aged 75 and older. During the summer monitoring period (June 1 to September 15), the majority of emergency room visits and SOS Médecins interventions for iCanicule occurred outside of this heatwave episode (78% and 80%, respectively).