The third heat wave currently affecting France will continue next week, with a heat wave expected Friday in most of the country, Météo-France announced on Sunday August 7.
Sunday and Monday, only two departments – Gard and Vaucluse – are affected by an orange alert for a heat wavesaid Christelle Robert, forecaster at Météo-France. “The number of departments in orange vigilance should increase over the week” she warned. In addition, sixteen departments, located mainly around mountainous macifs, are on yellow alert for thunderstorms (not shown on the map).
On the temperature side, “It’s going to heat up everywhere, we’re heading towards a new peak of heat which will affect almost all of France at the end of the week, starting with the south of the country”, she said, the only regions remaining below 30 ° C in the middle of the week being located along the English Channel.
This is not a fourth heat wave
“It is not a fourth heat wave, it is the same, which started on July 31, which continues”even if there had been for a few days, in certain regions of the north, a more breathable air, underlined the forecaster.
Sunday at the beginning of the afternoon, the hottest places are located in Aude, Pyrénées-Orientales, Gard and Hérault. Welcome storms hit Corsica, the Pyrenees and the Alps on Sunday.
On Twitter, Metéo-France Sud-Est reported a flood of the Asco river, in Corsica, which received 17.9 millimeters of water in thirty-six minutes. The organization warned of the risk of thunderstorms which could be accompanied by hail in the Tinée, Vésubie and Roya valleys. There is no major particular risk identified in the departments on thunderstorm vigilance, said Ms.me Robert.
On Monday, temperatures will rise further in the south-west and the lower Rhône valley, around 35°C to 38°C on average. Gradually, this rise in mercury will spread northward to the Loire on Tuesday, then Burgundy, Ile-de-France and the center-east on Thursday.
Since June 1, eight nights at 20°C or more, only one in 2021
Despite thunderstorms developing here and there, the historic drought continues. Since July 17, the soil moisture index has fallen below that recorded during the historic droughts of 1976 and 2003, recalled Mr.me Robert.
The dry standing vegetation being an easy fuel, the risk of fire increases. Sunday, more than 300 hectares burned in Finistère and Morbihan.
Since 1is June, Paris experienced eight nights when the temperature was greater than or equal to 20°C, compared to just one in the summer of 2021, eleven in 2020 – over the whole of the summer –, and sixteen in 2003 and in 1976. Nîmes has already known forty nights at this threshold since the 1is June, compared to thirty in 2021, forty-one in 2019, fifty-two in 2003 and eight in 1976.