France hits hottest June day on record as heat wave intensifies

France logged its hottest June day on record as the national thermal indicator reached 29.8 C, or 85.6 F, pushing the country into territory it had never measured before. The previous highs for that national average were 29.4 C during the August 2003 and July 2019 heat waves, a sign of how quickly the summer extremes are climbing.

Meteo France warned the heat would persist at least through the weekend and said further record-breaking temperatures were expected, including readings that could surpass all previous records regardless of time of year. By Tuesday, 54 departments, about half of France, were under a red heat-wave alert as the hot air spread across more than half the country, including its northernmost regions.

The strain was visible in daily life. Schools, transportation links, sporting events and tourist sites were disrupted, while the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre museum restricted visiting hours. France also remains far less prepared for sustained heat than many countries with similar incomes, with air conditioning still not widespread. In some towns, temperatures climbed above 40 C, or 104 F, and a Paris roofer said the zinc rooftops had become too hot to work on.

The public health toll was immediate. Authorities said France recorded 40 drowning fatalities in the past week as people tried to cool off in rivers and other bodies of water despite warnings against unsupervised swimming. Most of the victims were young people, underscoring how fast a heat wave can turn recreational water into a danger zone.

The heat was not confined to France. Britain’s Met Office said the United Kingdom could break its June temperature record of 35.6 C, set in Southampton in 1976, with around 37 C expected in southern England and highs of up to 39 C possible as the heat wave moved north from continental Europe. Red alerts were also in effect in the United Kingdom and Spain, where weather agencies warned of risks to tens of millions of people.

Scientists have linked the escalating extremes to human-caused climate change, and U.N. climate projections indicate the next five years are likely to bring more heat records. For governments weighing whether schools, hospitals, transit systems and worker protections are built for the climate already arriving, France’s record June heat offered a stark test.