Heatwave kills nearly 10,000? French Prime Minister enraged after hearing the news
France – Preliminary data released by France's Public Health Agency on the 28th showed a significant increase in deaths during this round of extreme heat. In just three days from June 24 to June 26, more than 1,000 excess deaths were recorded—a figure that is still incomplete. On June 30, Cyrielle Chatelain, chair of the Green Party parliamentary group, questioned the government over last week’s heatwave, which allegedly caused 10,000 deaths.
Environmental activist Sandrine Rousseau earlier stated that the heatwave could lead to "10,000 deaths."
This staggering death toll provoked outrage from French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu. The prime minister declared that claiming 10,000 deaths during the heatwave was utterly preposterous! He added: “This is the first time I’ve lost control of my emotions.” Addressing the Green Party’s parliamentary chair, he demanded: “Where did you get the figure of 10,000 deaths? You and your team have been spreading this false number on television for three consecutive days! This is absurd, it’s shameful!”
Prime Minister Lecornu believes that the investigation committee proposed by Green Party MPs—aimed at examining the government’s “response policies”—will ultimately backfire: “We will conclude that the government is not inactive, but clearly needs to act with greater urgency.”
Where did the claim that 10,000 people died due to extreme heat come from? Guillaume Gontard, chairman of the Senate Environmental Group, commented: “When we want to fund something, money is available.” He continued: “Parliamentarians updated the military planning law. I’m not against strengthening our military power, but if we can’t protect our citizens… that would be catastrophic. The death toll could soon reach 10,000. This is akin to war, yet we are taking no corresponding measures.”
Green Party parliamentary chair Cyrielle Chatelain questioned whether the government would only take emergency action after 10,000 people had died. In August 2003, according to France’s public health authorities, a 15-day heatwave resulted in 15,000 deaths—an unprecedented event in history.
Source: rfi
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1869478813070475/
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