France raised its warning level to "red" today, Monday, the highest warning level in the country, in four regions in the south due to a severe heatwave. This allows local authorities to cancel events and close public facilities if necessary. Environment Minister Christophe Béchu stated that the areas targeted by the warning are Rhône, Drôme, Ardèche, and Haute-Loire.
This is the sixth time that the French meteorological agency (Météo France) has raised the warning level to red in an effort by the government to protect the population during extreme weather conditions, marking the first instance of such this year. Earlier on Monday, Météo France issued an orange warning for half of the country, stating that temperatures would reach between 35 and 38 degrees Celsius in most of the areas covered by the warning. Temperatures are expected to reach 41 degrees Celsius in the southwest and in the Rhône Valley. The meteorological agency has forecasted that temperatures could rise to between 40 and 42 degrees Celsius tomorrow afternoon, Tuesday, in the areas of Ardèche, Drôme, Vaucluse, and southern Gard.
