Nine departments in France will be placed under a red heat alert from midday today due to extreme temperatures, while 76 departments remain under an orange alert level.
In the Paris region and several departments in central and western France, temperatures this morning ranged between 22 and 25 degrees Celsius, while forecasts indicate they could rise to 41 degrees, according to Le Figaro.
Authorities have warned that 59 departments face a “high or very high” risk of forest fires.
The prefect of the Drôme department in southeastern France has ordered further precautionary evacuations, affecting around 400 people in the mountainous area where approximately 3,500 hectares have been burned.
Weather services have announced that the heatwave is expected to peak between Sunday and Monday and will continue at least until July 15.
Cooler ocean air from the Atlantic is expected to bring the heatwave to an end from July 16–17 onward, according to Euronews.al.
Meanwhile, the red alert level was lifted for the Languedoc-Roussillon region in southern France, as the return of sea breezes significantly reduced temperatures this Friday.
