France records massive power cuts due to extreme heat and leaves thousands without relief
Heat waves have hit much of western Europe for days, and authorities in northern France mobilized teams on Wednesday (24) to restore electricity supply to thousands of homes affected by outages.
Hospitals, clinics and other essential places received priority in the work, with the supply of generators to keep nursing homes operating. Tuesday’s outages were attributed to a transformer incident.
In a statement, local representatives said “the incident was accidental and related to the current heat wave.” They also confirmed that there were no reports of injuries.
Record temperatures across the European continent, which reached 18 degrees Celsius above average, caused disruption to transport networks. Schools and tourist attractions were forced to close due to the extreme heat.
Meteorological agency Meteo France highlighted that the current conditions are similar to a heatwave that occurred in August 2003. That event, which lasted 16 days, resulted in around 80,000 additional deaths across Europe, a grim reminder of the severe impacts.
There is still no certainty about the duration of the current heat wave. The phenomenon is driven by a weather pattern known as “omega lock,” a formation that allows temperatures to rise day after day.
The World Meteorological Organization warns that Europe is warming at a rate more than twice the global average. This accelerated rise makes prolonged episodes of extreme heat increasingly likely, directly impacting the frequency and intensity of events like the current one.
The intense heat wave led construction companies to modify work schedules, allowing their employees to avoid peak heat hours. Retailers are struggling to meet high demand for fans and portable air conditioners as farmers harvest grain overnight following a ban on afternoon activities due to fire risks.
Furthermore, dozens of people drowned while trying to cool off in rivers and lakes to escape the heat.
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In the United Kingdom, the electricity grid operator asked generators to make more power available. The country is facing high temperatures, which could break records on Wednesday.
With temperatures hovering around 30 degrees Celsius, British health authorities have issued a “red heat” health warning. It is only the second time in history that this level of warning has been triggered, indicating a risk to life for healthy people, as well as the sick and elderly.
UK train operators have recommended that only essential journeys be made on Wednesday and Thursday, the hottest days. The heat caused speed restrictions on rail transport.
In southeastern France, a tragedy occurred with two children, aged two and four. They died inside a hot car, parked near their home, and the autopsy confirmed that the cause was excessive heat.
The children’s mother stated that they were in the vehicle without her knowledge, as reported by the regional prosecutor.
Italy’s Health Ministry has issued its maximum heat alert for 16 cities. The list includes important urban centers such as Florence, Milan, Rome, Turin and Verona.
Forecasts indicate that conditions are likely to worsen even further, especially in the central and northern regions of the country. Meteorologists point out that the heat wave could reach its peak between Sunday and Monday.
Temperatures can reach 41 degrees Celsius between Tuscany and Emilia. In coastal areas such as Liguria, the combination of extreme heat and humidity can cause wind chills to reach 45 degrees Celsius.
