Belgium records Europe's highest excess mortality during late June heatwave

Country reports 48% excess mortality, compared with 23% in France and 13% in Netherlands, despite similar temperatures

Belgium recorded Europe's highest excess mortality rate during the heatwave at the end of June, Belgian daily Het Nieuwsblad reported on Monday, citing data from the European mortality monitoring network EuroMOMO. Figures from Belgium's public health institute Sciensano showed that more than 2,000 additional deaths were recorded compared with expected mortality levels. Belgium registered an excess mortality rate of 48%, compared with 23% in France and 13% in the Netherlands, despite similarly high temperatures. Experts said socioeconomic factors contributed to the higher death toll. "There is, for example, a significant difference between Flanders and Wallonia. And there is an undeniable socio-economic aspect to this," biostatistician Geert Molenberghs of KU Leuven and Hasselt University told Het Nieuwsblad. "In a large, detached house with some greenery around it, it is less hot than in a small apartment with too many people," he said. According to the report, Flanders alone recorded an excess mortality rate of 31%, still higher than the national figures reported for France and the Netherlands. Molenberghs also pointed to Belgium's urban development patterns as a possible contributing factor, saying the country's "haphazard" building practices may have intensified the impact of extreme heat.