France Adds 30,000 Air Conditioning Units in Preparation for Heatwave

Istanbul (ANTARA) - Around 1,000 air conditioning units will be distributed to hospitals in the Paris region by the end of this weekend as part of France’s preparations for the next heatwave, BFM TV reported on Friday. The move comes after the government announced it had ordered 30,000 air conditioning units for hospitals across the country to improve readiness for future heatwaves. While awaiting the government distribution, several hospitals in the Paris area have already purchased additional air conditioning units independently. “I think this is very important and truly necessary to face a second heatwave, especially if it occurs soon after the first,” Emmanuel Raffoux, Head of the Haematology Department at Saint-Louis Hospital, told BFM TV. “Our bodies have been under stress and are trying to recover. Meanwhile, patients being treated here may face a second heatwave during the same period of care,” he said. During the recent heatwave, temperatures in some hospital wards were recorded at 32 degrees Celsius. The conditions prompted public hospitals in Paris to rush to buy additional air conditioning units. The Paris Public Hospital Network (AP-HP) stated it has installed and purchased 800 air conditioning units since the end of last summer through to mid-2026. The institution also managed to acquire an additional 1,000 units in less than a week. AP-HP hopes the government will reimburse the procurement costs following the implementation of the national programme to supply 30,000 air conditioning units to hospitals across France. France has experienced extremely high temperatures in recent days, with many areas recording temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius, driving up demand for cooling equipment.