After 11 days of historic heat, France's red alert shrinks to two Alsatian departments as storms roll in
France's most intense heatwave since 2003 is finally receding, but authorities warn of lingering health risks and severe thunderstorms.
Heatwave retreats to Alsace
Only the Haut-Rhin and Bas-Rhin departments remained under the maximum red alert for heat on Sunday morning, down from 72 at the episode's peak on Thursday. Météo-France said the alert would be lifted entirely at 22:00 on Sunday evening, ending 12 days of exceptional heat. Another 34 departments in Île-de-France and the eastern half of the country stayed on orange alert, while a further 14 were placed on orange alert for thunderstorms.
Cooler air is gaining ground from the west and northwest.
A heatwave of rare intensity
Météo-France described the episode as more intense than the deadly 2003 heatwave and comparable in duration. At its peak, 72 departments were simultaneously on red alert, and new absolute temperature records were set on Friday, including the first 40°C ever recorded in the Bas-Rhin. The Moselle department hit 39.8°C.
- Peak of the heatwave: 72 departments under red alert.
- New absolute temperature records set, including the first 40°C ever in Bas-Rhin.
- Storms sweep across France; red alert departments reduced to 37.
- Red alert confined to Haut-Rhin and Bas-Rhin, 45 departments on orange.
- All red alerts lifted; heatwave officially over.
The health effects remain ahead of us for several days.
Storms moving across the south
The weather agency warned of a "particularly intense" storm episode that began on Saturday and will continue through Sunday. Gusts exceeding 100 km/h, hail and heavy downpours (locally up to 50 mm in one hour) are expected from the Pyrénées up to the north-east. A first wave of storms was forecast to hit Centre-Val-de-Loire in the afternoon, followed by Hauts-de-France and the Ardennes in the evening.
Health toll and excess mortality
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu's office warned on Saturday that cases of dehydration, decompensation of chronic conditions and delayed hospitalisations would remain elevated for several days. Mediapart reported the first signs of excess mortality emerging after a week that exhausted vulnerable bodies.
Sunday's temperatures
Even as the heatwave eased, maximum temperatures remained high. Lyon was forecast to reach 39°C, Strasbourg 37°C and Marseille 36°C. Interior Provence could still see 35 to 40°C, while the Atlantic coast was cooler at 20 to 26°C. Minimal overnight temperatures stayed above 20°C in many regions.
- Lyon
- 39 °C
- Strasbourg
- 37 °C
- Marseille
- 36 °C
