Study: Nearly 62,000 people died in 2022 European heatwave

During the heatwave that engulfed Europe over the summer of 2022, nearly 62,000 people died of heat-related illnesses, according to a new study published Monday in the journal Nature Medicine.

The deaths occurred between May 30 and Sept. 4, researchers said, with the elderly and women particularly harmed — the heat-related mortality rate was 63% higher in woman compared to men, and the death toll was highest for people 65 and older. Italy had the most deaths, at 18,000, followed by Spain with around 11,000 and Germany with roughly 8,000.

To calculate the number of heat-related deaths, researchers created epidemiological models based on temperature and mortality data collected in 35 European countries between 2015 and 2022.

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After a brutal and deadly heatwave in 2003, several European countries came up with plans to prevent future heat-related deaths. The death toll from 2022 "suggests that adaptation strategies currently available may still be insufficient," study co-author Hicham Achebak, a researcher at ISGlobal, told CNN. "The acceleration of warming observed over the last 10 years underlines the urgent need to reassess and substantially strengthen prevention plans."