French prison winter conditions and lack of heating, Digi Mart USA News (France): An inmate told the Observatoire international des prisons (OIP) of difficult detention conditions in late 2025, as temperatures fell and the heating at his facility had still not been switched on, according to a publisher report.
The inmate said he was told at the end of October that there would be no heating until December. He said he had applied tape around the window, but air continued to pass through.
He reported receiving only two thin blankets in May and said no specific winter blankets appeared to be planned.
He also said the cell shower’s temperature is set automatically, with water either cold or scalding, and that it had recently been too hot, causing burns across his body. A doctor prescribed a cream for his skin.
He said the heating had been off for three weeks, that he had alerted the facility without success, and that the cold was preventing him from sleeping.
The account echoes earlier warnings. In December 2023, the OIP said several inmates had contacted it to report very low temperatures in their cells, with reports affecting several prisons and not limited to the oldest buildings.
The report cites other inmates describing similar conditions. One at the Fleury-Mérogis detention center said it was colder inside the cell than outside.
Another at the Lutterbach penitentiary center said butter in a pan became solid within one minute and 45 seconds. Some inmates said they improvised insulation using sponges, tennis balls and foam.
The OIP also said newer facilities, including Réau, opened in 2011, and Vendin-le-Vieil, commissioned in 2014, are affected. Inmates have limited ability to move rooms or add personal heaters, leaving few options when collective heating is delayed or air leaks through windows.
