France on high alert as ongoing heatwave fuels wildfire and pollution risks
In Aude, where vineyards and Mediterranean scrub stretch across hills, hundreds of firefighters remained on the ground to monitor the perimeter of a vast wildfire that burned through 160 square kilometres last week.
Local authorities said the blaze is now contained, but warned it could smoulder for weeks, with hot spots still posing a risk.
Meteo-France, the country's national weather service, placed 12 departments on red alert, a designation issued only eight times since its creation in 2004 following a deadly summer heatwave the year before.
Officials said the red alert allows local authorities to cancel outdoor gatherings, shut public spaces and modify school or summer camp timetables.
The warning is triggered for extreme, prolonged heat events which pose severe health risks and the potential to disrupt daily life.Social media posts showed shuttered streets in Valence, residents covering windows with foil to reflect sunlight and tourists sheltering under umbrellas along the Garonne in Toulouse. Café terraces in the south were empty as people moved indoors to escape the heat.The heatwave, France's second this summer, began on Friday and is forecast to last all week, extending into the 15 August holiday weekend.Forecasters expect it to push north, with highs of 38°C in the Centre-Val de Loire region and up to 34°C in Paris.According to local media, the conditions are also worsening air quality, prompting pollution alerts in several regions.In Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, the prefecture has declared an ozone pollution emergency across several departments, introducing restricted traffic measures in parts of the Aix-Marseille-Provence area to cut emissions.Paris is facing similarly poor air quality, according to the weather monitoring agency Airparif, which also flagged degraded conditions in major cities.Health officials have warned residents to avoid outdoor activity during peak pollution and to limit unnecessary driving. — BBC
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
Heatwave scorches parts of Europe and fans wildfire threat in France
PARIS: A heat wave gripped parts of Europe on Monday, sending temperatures up to 43 degrees Celsius in southern France and increasing risks of wildfires in wine country, while Bulgaria suffered blazes along its southern borders and Hungary saw record-breaking weekend temperatures. Scientists say Europe is becoming the world's fastest-warming continent. According to the UK-based Carbon Brief, 2025 is predicted to be the second- or third-warmest year on record. Europe's land temperatures have risen about 2.3 C above pre-industrial levels, nearly twice the global rate, intensifying heatwaves, the EU's Copernicus climate service reports. EU data show burned area across the continent is already far above the long-term average this summer, with major outbreaks in Spain, Portugal and deadly blazes in Greece since late June. The UK's Met Office expects a heatwave, the fourth this summer, to peak around 33C in London on Tuesday. The UK Health Security Agency issued a yellow health alert for older adults and those with medical conditions. In France's Aude department, a patchwork of vineyards and Mediterranean scrubland, hundreds of firefighters remained in the rolling wine country guarding the edges of a massive, deadly blaze that scorched 16,000 hectares last week. Officials say the fire is under control but warn it will not be fully extinguished for weeks, with hot spots still smoldering and at risk of reigniting. On Monday, the French national weather authority, Météo-France, placed 12 departments on red alert, the country's highest heat warning, anticipating exceptional heat stretching from the Atlantic coast to the Mediterranean plains. Forty-one other departments were under lower-level orange alerts, as was the neighboring microstate of Andorra, between France and Spain. 'Don't be fooled — this isn't 'normal, it's summer.' It's not normal, it's a nightmare,' agricultural climatologist Serge Zaka, told BFMTV from Montauban in France's Tarn-et-Garonne department, where the blistering heat pressed relentlessly throughout the day. Social media images showed shuttered streets in Valence, residents shielding windows with foil to reflect the light, and tourists huddling under umbrellas along the Garonne in Toulouse. Across the south, cafe terraces stood empty as people sought cooler corners indoors. The red alert in France has been issued only eight times since it was created in 2004 after a deadly summer the year before. It is reserved for extreme, prolonged heat with major health risks and the potential to disrupt daily life. The designation gives local officials powers to cancel outdoor events, close public venues and alter school or summer camp schedules.
Saudi Gazette
10 hours ago
- Saudi Gazette
France on high alert as ongoing heatwave fuels wildfire and pollution risks
PARIS — Southwest France sweltered on Monday as temperatures rose to 43 degrees Celsius in parts of Charente and Aude, prompting the country's highest heat alert across a dozen departments. In Aude, where vineyards and Mediterranean scrub stretch across hills, hundreds of firefighters remained on the ground to monitor the perimeter of a vast wildfire that burned through 160 square kilometres last week. Local authorities said the blaze is now contained, but warned it could smoulder for weeks, with hot spots still posing a risk. Meteo-France, the country's national weather service, placed 12 departments on red alert, a designation issued only eight times since its creation in 2004 following a deadly summer heatwave the year before. Officials said the red alert allows local authorities to cancel outdoor gatherings, shut public spaces and modify school or summer camp timetables. The warning is triggered for extreme, prolonged heat events which pose severe health risks and the potential to disrupt daily media posts showed shuttered streets in Valence, residents covering windows with foil to reflect sunlight and tourists sheltering under umbrellas along the Garonne in Toulouse. Café terraces in the south were empty as people moved indoors to escape the heatwave, France's second this summer, began on Friday and is forecast to last all week, extending into the 15 August holiday expect it to push north, with highs of 38°C in the Centre-Val de Loire region and up to 34°C in to local media, the conditions are also worsening air quality, prompting pollution alerts in several Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, the prefecture has declared an ozone pollution emergency across several departments, introducing restricted traffic measures in parts of the Aix-Marseille-Provence area to cut is facing similarly poor air quality, according to the weather monitoring agency Airparif, which also flagged degraded conditions in major officials have warned residents to avoid outdoor activity during peak pollution and to limit unnecessary driving. — BBC
Arab News
2 days ago
- Arab News
Challenging day for firefighters battling huge blaze in France
FONTJONCOUSE: Firefighters have contained a massive wildfire in southern France but local officials warned on Sunday that scorching heat and dry conditions could reignite the blaze, as parts of the Mediterranean region face a heatwave. The fire has ravaged a vast area of France's southern Aude department at the peak of the summer tourist season, killing one person and injuring several others. Authorities said that hot, dry winds on Sunday — similar to those on the day the blaze began — and a heatwave would make the work of firefighters more difficult. 'It's a challenging day, given that we are likely to be on red alert for heatwave from 4:00 pm, which will not make things any easier,' said Christian Pouget, prefect of the Aude department. The fire is no longer spreading but is still burning within a 16,000-hectare area, said Christophe Magny on Saturday, chief of the region's firefighter unit, adding it would not be under control until Sunday evening. But the blaze will 'not be extinguished for several weeks,' he said. Some 1,300 firefighters were mobilized to prevent the blaze from reigniting amid fears that the tramontane wind, which officials said picked up overnight Saturday to Sunday, could fan lingering hot spots. Temperatures this weekend are expected to hit 40 degrees Celsius in some areas, and Monday is forecast to be the 'hottest day nationwide,' according to national weather service Meteo France. In Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, a 65-year-old woman was found dead on Wednesday in her home, which was devastated by flames. Authorities said one resident suffered serious burns and four others were lightly injured, while 19 firefighters were hurt, including one with a head injury. Experts say European countries are becoming ever more vulnerable to such disasters due to intensifying summer heatwaves linked to global warming. The blaze — the largest in at least 50 years — tore through 16,000 hectares of vegetation, disaster officials said. For livestock farmers in Fontjoncouse, the fire has ravaged grazing land and wiped out much of their flocks, fueling outrage among those who said they did not have time to evacuate their herds. Emmanuelle Bernier said she was 'extremely angry' when she returned to a devastating scene, finding the pen that had housed her herd of goats in ruins, with 17 animals — some close to giving birth — lost in the fire. 'I will definitely change jobs. This will change my whole life,' she said. Bernier's property now holds only a few geese and two sick goats after she had to temporarily entrust her surviving sheep to a local winegrower, as the damage to the farm was so extensive that they could no longer stay. 'Everything here was built around the sheep, and seeing the flock leave was incredibly difficult for me,' she said. But as she surveyed the scorched landscape, Bernier voiced some hope for the future. 'There's still a little life left,' she said.
