France records hottest day on record with temperatures above 110F
REUTERS/Abdul Saboor
France
recorded its hottest day on record and 40 people have drowned across the
country over the past week, The Guardian reported
on June 23.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu called the situation "a tragic scourge of drownings" and said 40 people have died since June 18, most of them young. He said the government is preparing an emergency meeting as a wave of abnormal heat grips the country.
France’s national weather service, Météo‑France, said June 23 was the hottest day since records began in 1947. Temperatures reached 44.3°C (111.7°F) in Landes and 42.1°C (107.8°F) in Bordeaux. Fifty‑four departments were placed on red alert as the extreme heat affected nearly half the country. Nighttime temperatures also hit record highs.
The heat forced several tourist sites in Paris to change hours. The Eiffel Tower closed early at 4 p.m. Tuesday and may do so again. The Louvre said it temporarily shortened opening hours because of overheating in the building and increased visitor numbers.
Early Tuesday, France’s national heat index reached a record 29.8°C (85.6°F), surpassing previous peaks in 2003 and 2019.
Authorities in Île‑de‑France recommended residents work from home and limit travel, including by rail, warning of risks to infrastructure under extreme temperatures.
In the southwest, operators shut down the Golfech nuclear
reactor after river water used for cooling exceeded the permitted 28°C
(82.4°F).
The military war may be swinging in our favor, but the information war continues.
Just as an army needs soldiers, so does a free society need its journalists to ensure that people have access to honest, trustworthy voices to understand the world around them.
For the past five years, The New Voice of Ukraine has been working tirelessly to push back against Russian narratives and defend democracy. But we cannot do it alone.
Please consider supporting us on Patreon for just $5 a month – your donation does directly to supporting journalists and ensuring that this front of the infowar says solid and defended.
Thank you.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News
