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Italy: 4,000 died in heat wave
ROME, Italy -- The high numbers of elderly Italians who apparently died as a result of this summer's scorching heat wave will not have died in vain, the country's health minister has pledged. The Health Ministry said on Thursday 34,071 people over the age of 65 died between July 16 and August 15, compared with 29,896 in 2002 -- a 14 percent increase. "Nobody is looking for scapegoats, but all of this research helps to avoid problems in the future," Health Minister Girolamo Sirchia told a news conference. In some cities, including Turin and Genoa, the increase in deaths on the previous year was as high as 40 percent during the heat wave, Reuters reported. Temperatures soared as high as 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) during the period. The heat wave clearly had a role in the high numbers, according to officials from the ministry's Superior Health Institute, which compiled the figures. "There is a relationship between heat peaks and mortality," The Associated Press quoted institute official Dr. Donato Greco as saying. But officials said they could not blame the deaths entirely on the heat without further study. It was Italy's first official figures related to the heat. The government had first balked at releasing any figures but changed course following a public outcry in response to France's startling toll. An estimated 11,435 people died in France from the heat, the French government has said. The country's leading undertaker put the number at 15,000 on Tuesday. The French toll sparked a political uproar in Paris over who was to blame, with calls for the health minister to resign. But Jean-Francois Mattei told lawmakers Thursday he had no plans to step down. A government report this week blamed hospitals for letting doctors leave during August vacation and faulted health authorities for being too slow to realize how serious the situation was. Spain reported 100 heat-related deaths, while Portugal scrapped its initial estimate of 1,300 deaths and lowered it to just four. In Amsterdam, Dutch authorities estimated 1,000 to 1,400 victims, while in Britain officials said there were 907 more deaths registered during the week ending August 15 compared to the average from the same period over the previous five years. The UK Health Department said it was "fair to assume" that some of those deaths resulted from high temperatures. German authorities have reported about 40 heat-related deaths this summer, and in Belgium initial hospital reports indicate 150 more deaths between July 1 and August 15 than the same period last year. In Serbia-Montenegro, three people were believed to have died from the heat wave in the Montenegrin capital, Podgorica, AP said. Copyright 2003 CNN. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.
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