An early and exceptional heat wave spreads over France

A child cools off in Montpellier, southern France, on June 14, 2022.

35 to 39°C, even 40°C in places: an exceptional and early heat wave will hit France until the weekend, a new sign of climate change with increasingly costly human and economic consequences.

With the arrival of hot air from the Maghreb via Spain, which is already suffocating, the south-west of the country will be affected first from Tuesday with temperatures of up to 36°C, according to Météo-France. Later in the week, highs above 40°C are expected in this region.

The mercury will panic throughout the country, both in the southern half and in the northern half, which will experience temperatures of 30°C to 35°C on Friday and Saturday.

An unequivocal sign of global warming, heat waves are multiplying and intensifying all over the world.

In Spain, up to #x27;43 degrees were expected in the south of the country on Tuesday, more than 10 degrees above seasonal norms.

Spain is also at caught in a major heat wave.

This so early heat wave with record breaking temperatures and which adds to another heat wave less than a month ago is an extremely worrying fact, said the Spanish Minister for Ecological Transition , Teresa Ribera.

According to the Spanish meteorological agency Aemet, temperatures are 7 to 12 degrees above seasonal norms and this heat wave is expected to continue until Saturday at least.

Consequence: the risk of fire is extreme over much of Spain, according to this agency.

Same thing in France , where the spokesperson for the Firefighters Federation Eric Brocardi warned of a summer of all dangers.

On Monday, several major fire outbreaks took place in a region in the south-east of France, in particular burning 60 bungalows in one of the largest campsites in Europe.

Ensuring that she is fully mobilized, French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne is meeting prefects and regional health agencies on Tuesday to ensure that all the arrangements are in place.

In Bordeaux, in the south-west, we are preparing: We have purchased foggers […] which we are going to install in public spaces, both in squares in the city which are ovens, spaces like kindergarten dormitories and halls of residences for seniors, explains Sylvie Justome, Assistant for Health and Seniors.

The French authorities are concerned about the health of the most vulnerable due to the heat wave which is expected to last several days.

Metropolitan France has already experienced more exceptional temperatures in June. The absolute record dates from June 2019, with 46°C in the shade in Vérargues, in the south-east, but it was at the very end of the month, on the 28th.

This wave is the earliest: We could reach 40°C for the first time this early in the season, Olivier Proust, forecaster at Météo-France, told AFP on Tuesday.< /p>

Earliness that weighs on organisms with longer days and shorter nights in June than in July or August.

Faced with climate change, the French government has announced the creation of a fund of 500 million euros (675 million Canadian dollars) for the renaturation of cities.

The heat wave which occurs after a particularly hot and dry spring will further aggravate the dryness of the soil, particularly agricultural.

Matthieu Sorel, climatologist at Météo-France, reported to AFP's of soil moisture levels worthy of late July.

The Loire dried up in places in Ancenis-Saint-Géréon on June 13, 2022.

As for the water tables, which the occasional summer rainfall, even heavy, cannot not recharge, they are declining, with a worrying situation in certain regions, according to the Bureau of Geological and Mining Research.

In this context, 36 departments, i.e. more than a third of the country , have implemented water use restrictions.

The looming hot weather is particularly risky for the elderly and vulnerable, infants and outdoor workers.

Like on this tram construction site in the Bordeaux region. This week, we will at least attack at 7 a.m. Maybe at 6 a.m., explains Aurélien Theillaud, works director. And the union minimum is three liters of water per employee per day.

Workers in Bordeaux, in the south of the France, June 14, 2022