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Ireland has recorded no excess mortality during this year’s heatwave, according to official monitoring data cited by Health Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill.
In a recently-published parliamentary question reply, the Fine Gael Minister said the latest figures from the European Mortality Monitoring Project (EuroMOMO) show no excess mortality has been recorded in Ireland since Week 8 of 2026, including during the period following the hot weather at the end of May.
The response came after Green Party leader Roderic O’Gorman asked whether the Department of Health or the HSE had gathered statistics on heat-related deaths and what measures are in place to monitor mortality during heatwave events.
Carroll MacNeill said the Department of Health does not produce its own estimates of excess mortality but instead relies on data monitored by the HSE’s Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) through EuroMOMO, a European surveillance network that tracks deaths linked to public health threats including seasonal influenza and heatwaves.
The Minister said EuroMOMO remains the Department’s primary indicator for monitoring excess mortality in Ireland.
“The latest data published by EuroMOMO relates to Week 27 2026,” Carroll MacNeill said.
“For Ireland, no excess mortality has been recorded since Week 8 2026… It should be noted that for more recent periods, these data are provisional due to the time lag with death registration in Ireland.”
She said the figures are adjusted to account for delays in death registrations, although estimates for the most recent weeks remain subject to revision as additional data becomes available.
Carroll MacNeill also noted that while Ireland has not recorded excess mortality in recent months, other European countries have.
Quoting the latest EuroMOMO bulletin, she said pooled mortality estimates showed an increase across participating countries around Week 26.
“This week’s pooled EuroMOMO estimates of all-cause mortality for the participating European countries show increased mortality around week 26, 2026,” Carroll MacNeill said.
“The increase is mainly seen in age groups above 45 years, particularly affecting some countries.”
According to the Minister, EuroMOMO’s latest map showed France and Belgium recording very high excess mortality during Week 26, while several other participating countries recorded moderate or low excess mortality.
Carroll MacNeill said the Department of Health and the HPSC will continue to monitor EuroMOMO’s weekly mortality estimates.
Excess mortality refers to the number of deaths above the level normally expected during a given period. Ireland has participated in EuroMOMO since 2009, with the HPSC using daily death registration data from the General Register Office to monitor trends and identify unusual increases in mortality.
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