Hot and stuck in Paris and London: homes not built for heat

Bars of soap have melted and pressure in wine bottles has started pushing out the corks in Ulysse Zachary’s attic flat beneath the zinc rooftops of Paris, where the 21-year-old sleeps under wet towels to cope with a record-breaking heatwave.

The 9-square-metre (97-square-foot) apartment becomes “an oven” after a few hours of sunshine, he said, highlighting the challenge for residents of Paris and London as rising temperatures expose the shortfalls of homes built to retain rather than deflect...