Paris Deputy Mayor Blames US Emissions for Europe's Deadly Heat Wave

As temperatures across France and Spain pushed above 104°F and the death toll from Europe's ongoing heat wave surpassed 1,300, a pointed exchange unfolded on social media between American tourists and a Paris official that exposed a real tension at the center of the crisis: why does Europe lack the air conditioning that most Americans take for granted, and who bears responsibility for the conditions that made this summer so dangerous?

Audrey Pulvar, Paris's deputy mayor for international relations, weighed in directly. Her answer pointed to the United States.

What Pulvar Said

The exchange began when American journalists and influencers traveling in Paris began posting about the near-total absence of air conditioning in the city during temperatures climbing toward France's all-time June record of 99.7°F. The posts drew widespread attention to the dramatic gap between the roughly 90 percent of American homes equipped with AC and the roughly 19 percent of European homes that have any cooling at all.

Pulvar responded on social media with a pointed message directed at her American critics. "As the second-largest emitter of greenhouse gas emissions in the world, you bear a significant amount of responsibility for global warming and the consequences we, in France, are experiencing."