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Heatwave alert level in south of France raised to RED for the first time

The Local France
The Local France - [email protected]
Heatwave alert level in south of France raised to RED for the first time
Photo: AFP / Météo France

A swathe of southern France saw the heatwave alert level raised from orange to red on Thursday with officials saying "all members of the public should be concerned, even if they are in good health." Temperatures are set to top 40C in the south on Friday.

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The country's national weather service Météo France raised the alert level from orange to red for the southern departments of Herault, Gard, Vaucluse and Bouches-du-Rhone.

The move marks the first time since the warning system was brought in in 2004 that parts of the country have been on red alert for the a heatwave, called a canicule in French.

The warning level has been raised because temperatures in the south are forecast to reach as high as 44C on Friday.

The mercury is set to rise to 42C in Montpellier on Friday and touch 43C in Arles and Avignon.

Some 74 other departments around France, basically most of the rest of the country apart from Brittany and the far north, remain on Orange alert.

 

The red level alert, which is for a "dangerous weather phenomenon" comes with some warnings for the public to take the upmost precaution.

Météo France said "all of us are threatened, even healthy people".

It adds: "the danger is greater for seniors, people with chronic illness or mental health issues, people who take regular medications and people who are isolated."
 
Those who work outside are told to take care and watch out for the signs of heat stroke, which include: fever over 40C, hot, red and dry skin, headaches, nausea, drowsiness, intense thirst, confusion and convulsions.
 
This was the weather map from Méteo France for Friday afternoon.
 

Also on Friday the country's rail provider SNCF announced it would allow passengers to cancel train tickets booked over the coming days free of charge, due to the heat.

The cancellations must be done in advance and apply to all train travel.

 

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Anonymous 2019/06/27 22:02
In the context above. it's "utmost" not "upmost"

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