France expands heatwave alert to 53 departments amid intense heatwave

France’s heat emergency widened fast on Thursday as Météo-France placed 27 more departments under orange canicule vigilance, bringing the total to 53 by Friday noon. The alert stretched from the southwest to the northeast, with Paris and much of Île-de-France among the areas now facing dangerous heat in a spell officials described as widespread, prolonged and intense.

The orange list included Paris, Seine-et-Marne, Yvelines, Essonne, Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis, Val-de-Marne and Val-d’Oise, while 26 other departments remained under yellow alert. Météo-France said the episode was beginning on June 18 and was likely to expand further in the coming days because very few regions were expected to escape the heat. The agency’s orange warning means dangerous phenomena are forecast and people should follow official safety advice.

Temperatures on Friday were expected to reach 34 C to 36 C across much of the country, with 38 C possible near the French Riviera and Corsica. Paris and Île-de-France were forecast to hit about 36 C to 37 C, close to monthly June records. After a brief dip in the north and northwest on Saturday, heat was expected to intensify again, with highs around 40 C projected in western and central France between Sunday and Tuesday.

The strain was already moving beyond weather maps and into public services. SNCF cancelled some trains and was suspending dozens of Intercités services between Thursday and Monday, hitting major city links as rail systems struggled with the heat. In Paris, some schools were partially closed, and some oral baccalauréat examinations could be rescheduled if conditions became unsafe. Several municipalities also cancelled Fete de la Musique events planned for Sunday, cutting off one of the country’s most visible summer gatherings before the heat even peaked.

The power system was under pressure too. EDF warned that three nuclear plants could face production curbs because high temperatures on the Rhône and Garonne rivers limited cooling water, a reminder that extreme heat can ripple into electricity supply as well as health and transport. Any cuts were to be reviewed on June 24 and could begin June 25 if confirmed, adding another layer of risk to a grid already shaped by France’s heavy reliance on nuclear power.

The warning carried a broader public-health message as well. Météo-France’s vigilance system, created in October 2001, runs nationally from June 1 to September 15, the same window the French health ministry uses for heat-risk surveillance. The ministry says repeated heatwaves have caused excess mortality in recent decades, especially among older people, making the expanding alert a test of whether hospitals, employers, schools and local authorities can protect the most exposed as France enters a hotter summer.