As the weather service Météo-France warns that the country could reach unusual temperatures of “38 degrees or even 39 degrees Celsius” in places in the coming days, during this “rare, historic and unprecedented” episode of early heat, the authorities say that at least they have lost their lives from incidents related to the condition.
The heatwave continues for the next few days
“On Thursday, we will see a slight shift of very high temperatures to the south and east. We could see 38 degrees Celsius in places, or even 39 degrees Celsius in some areas” (…), which would be “completely unprecedented”, said Adrien Varnan, a meteorologist at Météo-France.
The mercury soared last weekend due to the presence in France and across western Europe of a “thermal dome”, a high pressure zone trapping warm air from North Africa.
The government requests additional measures from the local authorities
According to what was announced by the Deputy Minister of Energy, Mont Bresson, five of the dead died when they drowned in different incidents while swimming in lakes, rivers and beaches. On the occasion of the heat and these incidents, the government instructed the local authorities to take measures to protect those participating in sports events. It is noted that Roland-Garros is underway in Paris.
New record temperature and dead in Britain too
On the same day in Great Britain, the historical temperature record was broken throughout the country for the month of May. According to the national meteorological service, London recorded 35 degrees Celsius, breaking the previous record set a few hours earlier in Kew Gardens where the mercury showed 34.8 degrees Celsius. This area previously held the relevant records, as a temperature of 32.8°C was recorded in 1922 and the same temperature was recorded again in 1944.
In the meantime, as announced, four teenagers have drowned since Sunday in the country, it was announced by the competent authorities. According to what was announced, the young people, apparently unaccustomed to such high temperatures, were trying to cool down.
These drowning deaths took place in waters in different parts of the country. A young man went missing in the Sheffield area (north), another near Manchester (north), a third in Lincoln (east), local police said, and a teenage girl near Birmingham (central), county authorities said.
In addition, a 60-year-old man drowned while trying to help other people who were in danger while bathing on a beach in Cornwall, British media reported.
