Experts estimate that more than 47,000 people died as a result of high temperatures in Europe in 2023, so far the hottest since measurements began. That figure was reported in a modeling study published in the journal Natural Medicine. However, an international research group led by the Institute for Global Health in Barcelona also concluded that society has adapted to high temperatures.
The team used Eurostat data on 96 million deaths to estimate how many of them were heat-related in 823 regions, or 35 European countries, in 2023, reports Al Jazeera Balkans.
An estimated 47,690 deaths in Europe were linked to high temperatures last year. This is the second highest death rate since such measurements began in 2015. The highest rate was recorded in 2022.
The researchers found that countries in southern Europe had the highest heat-related death rates. Greece (393 deaths per million inhabitants), Bulgaria (229), Italy (209) and Spain (175) took the top four places in the assessment. By comparison, Germany’s rate was 76 deaths per million inhabitants in 2023.
In concrete figures, the research group estimates that in 2023 the number of heat-related deaths in Italy was less than 12,750, and in Germany 6,376.
