Heatwave exposes hardship in French prisons

Paris – 19 July 2026: When heat builds up in cells, many prisoners have nowhere to escape to. A report broadcast by Franceinfo on Sunday draws attention to the strain in French detention facilities during the recent heatwave. At the centre is a situation that cannot be reduced to a few particularly hot days: overcrowding and structural shortcomings affect people who cannot simply leave their surroundings.

The recent heatwave had gripped France until mid-July before being pushed back by severe thunderstorms on 16 July, according to Météo-France. But the question of protecting incarcerated people remains. Extreme temperatures become particularly problematic in cells when several people are housed in confined spaces, there is little cooling at night, and access to outdoor areas is limited.

Official figures from the Ministry of Justice illustrate the scale of overcrowding. As of 1 May 2026, 88,654 people were incarcerated in France, while 63,322 operational prison places were listed. Some 7,693 prisoners slept on mattresses on the floor. In pre-trial detention units and comparable sections, occupancy for 59,653 people stood at at least 120 percent of intended capacity.

The Contrôleur général des lieux de privation de liberté, the independent oversight body for places of detention, again warned in early July about the consequences of this development. The authority considers the continuing overcrowding to be seriously undermining prisoners’ dignity and rights in numerous facilities. Heat is not an isolated problem: it exacerbates conflicts, makes hygiene and medical care more difficult, and also places a burden on prison staff.

The situation is also being discussed in parliament. A question to the government published a few days ago refers to the appeal by the Paris Bar Association on 7 July to take immediate measures to protect incarcerated people during periods of heat. It calls for concrete safeguards against health risks as well as steps to address overcrowding, which worsens every crisis situation in prisons.

On 22 May, the government had already published an instruction on exceptional measures in the context of overcrowding. This reflects the pressure faced by public prosecutors’ offices and the prison system. The current report makes one thing clear: the heatwave has subsided. But the structural lack of space in many French prisons remains – along with the question of how the state ensures the protection of people behind closed doors.