Météo-France puts 9 western departments on red alert as heatwave intensifies and wildfires kill a firefighter
Météo-France has placed nine departments in western France on red alert for heat from midday on 10 July, as the country endures its third extreme heat episode in under two months with temperatures peaking above 41°C.
Alert levels escalate across the west
Météo-France raised nine departments to red alert (the highest level) from midday on Friday, 10 July. The departments in question are Morbihan, Ille-et-Vilaine, Mayenne, Sarthe, Loire-Atlantique, Vendée, Maine-et-Loire, Vienne, and Deux-Sèvres. A further 76 departments were on orange alert on Thursday, a list that was set to expand on Friday to include 14 new departments, mainly in the Grand Est region. The orange alert has covered 72 departments on Thursday and was lifted only for Bouches-du-Rhône.
Cet épisode de fortes chaleurs, le troisième en moins de deux mois, doit persister jusqu'à mardi 14 juillet au moins.
Numbers: heat records and fire outbreaks
Thursday’s average temperature in metropolitan France hit 27°C, with a high of 41.2°C recorded in Narbonne. Remarkable temperatures also swept Brittany, where Vannes reached 36.8°C. The heat combines with severe drought, and Météo-France described the wildfire situation as unprecedented, with 59 departments facing high to very high fire danger. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez reported that more than 325 fire starts were recorded across the country on Wednesday alone.
Plus de 325 départs de feu ont été recensés sur l'ensemble du territoire.
In the Drôme, a fire near Die has consumed 3,500 hectares over a week despite 570 deployed firefighters, forcing the evacuation of around 400 residents. In Savoie, over 5,000 inhabitants and tourists remain cut off in the villages of Planay and Pralognan-la-Vanoise after a fire closed the access road. A 22-year-old volunteer firefighter died in that fire on Wednesday. In Pyrénées-Orientales, a separate fire that burned nearly 5,000 hectares is improving day by day, with evacuees returning.
- Sarthe placed on orange alert
- Météo-France announces red alert for 9 western departments from Friday noon
- Nationwide temperature average hits 27°C; Narbonne peaks at 41.2°C
- Red alert takes effect in 9 departments; orange alert expands to 76 departments
- Forecast end of the heatwave episode
Restrictions on sports, events, and alcohol
Prefects in red-alert departments issued sweeping restrictions. Outdoor sporting events and competitions, along with activities in non-air-conditioned spaces, are banned from noon to 8 p.m. starting Friday, 10 July, for the duration of the red alert. In Maine-et-Loire, outdoor festivities and musical events must be adapted: organisers are required to provide drinking water, shaded areas, and adjust schedules (with a strong recommendation to avoid the 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. window). In Sarthe, several municipalities have cancelled and postponed 14 July fireworks. The sale and consumption of alcohol on public roads are prohibited until Monday, 13 July at 8 a.m., with exceptions for licensed terraces and restaurants.
Health and emergency response
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu convened an interministerial crisis unit on Friday. The ORSEC heatwave plan has been triggered by prefects, and departmental operational centres will meet daily. Mayors have been asked to activate communal safeguarding plans. Nursing homes and medico-social institutions have activated their "plan bleu." Day centres for the homeless remain open until 7 p.m. instead of 2 p.m. A Canicule info service hotline (0800 06 66 66) is active from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., offering advice on protecting oneself and vulnerable relatives. The Haut Conseil pour le climat separately judged France’s decarbonisation and adaptation policies as insufficient.
What is next
The heatwave is forecast to persist at least through Tuesday, 14 July, meaning the restrictions affecting Bastille Day celebrations and school-holiday travel in the west will likely remain in place through the weekend.
