Amman, July 10 (Petra)-- France's Minister of Sports, Marina Ferrari, announced on Friday that 131 people have died from drowning incidents across the country since June 19, as France continues to grapple with an intense and unusual heatwave.

The latest figure marks a sharp increase from the more than 90 drowning deaths reported by the minister just a week ago.

Ferrari said that 55 percent of the fatalities occurred while people were swimming in unsupervised areas that were not designated for bathing and lacked lifeguards, while 20 percent of the deaths were recorded at private swimming facilities, particularly pools.

She added that many of the victims were minors under the age of 18, as well as adults over the age of 60.

The rising death toll comes as France, along with several other European countries, continues to experience a prolonged period of extreme heat in recent weeks.

//Petra// MF