The current heat wave in France could reach an intensity equivalent to that recorded in August 2003, which marked a record of deaths, almost 15,000 peoplebut it will be “earlier,” warned this Friday the director of Meteo FranceSophie Voirin, at a press conference.
“The days at the beginning of (next) week could be among the hottest days ever recorded,” Voirin warned.
The director of Météo France pointed out that several departments could go on Sunday to the state of maximum heat alert, red, at a time when more than half of them are on orange alert, the second most serious.
Temperatures will be around or even exceed 40 degrees Celsius during the day in several parts of the country over the weekend and there will be minimums of 25 degrees, which is considered tropical nights.
Given the severity of this heat wave, which affects a large part of the country, the French Prime Minister, Sébastien Lecornu, plans to activate this Saturday an interministerial crisis center in the Home Office.
The heat has also already impacted train circulation (71 canceled throughout France) and has caused the closure of 150 schools throughout the country. Numerous high school oral exams have also been postponed.
An activation of the red alert could extend the cancellation of several outdoor events.
Due to the orange alert, several Music Festivals in French towns have been cancelled, as well as sporting events, such as a relay marathon on Sunday in Paris.
However, the Festival of the Paris music —the largest in the country, with an influx of tens of thousands of people in the streets— remains for the moment, although some concerts of this event have already been cancelled.
The concert of Bruno Mars at the Saint-Denis stadium it is also maintained for the moment.
