South-west and Paris on heatwave alert

All of south-west France and the Ile-de-France is on orange heatwave alert this morning with Météo France saying 16 departments face temperatures from 22C this morning to 38C this afternoon.

All of Nouvelle Aquitaine, Paris and the inner circle (Hautes-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis and Val de Marne) plus Vendée and Maine-et-Loire are all on orange alert with residents facing a very sunny and hot day where keeping cool and well-hydrated are vital.

Autan winds are also expected to gust up to 70kph across the Midi Toulousain and Tarn.

The hot weather is expected to spread east across the country in coming days, probably until at least Thursday.

Official advice for the ‘canicule’ heatwave is to spend at least three hours inside in a cool place, keep your body cool and fresh with regular body washes, drink water frequently even when not thirsty and avoid going out in the hottest parts of the day. The advice also says to avoid alcohol.