Khaberni - France is experiencing an unprecedented heatwave due to its early arrival, which led to record temperatures for the month of May on Sunday, and to cases of discomfort related to the heat during sports events, one of which in Paris witnessed the death of a runner.
This early heatwave is attributed, according to the national meteorological service, to a "heat dome" over France, an area of high atmospheric pressure that traps hot air coming from North Africa. The heatwave is expected to intensify on Monday.
In total, 13 departments in the west of the country are under a yellow alert for the heatwave, which is the first level of the alert system that is typically activated starting from the first of June.
The meteorological service explained that "this is the first yellow alert for a heatwave to be activated in May since the system was established" in 2004.
Temperatures exceeded 30 degrees on Sunday in many areas, including Paris where it reached 31.9 degrees, and is expected to reach 35 degrees in western France on Monday.
According to the French meteorological agency, this early heatwave is "prolonged" and could continue at least until the beginning of next week.
On Sunday evening, the Ministry of Sports called for "the utmost vigilance in sporting activities" and urged "all participants, trainers, organizers, and sports facilities to exercise the utmost caution".
This was after one of the participants in a race in the capital died on Sunday during the race. Nearly ten runners from another race in Maison-Alfort, a suburb of Paris, were transported to the hospital in critical condition, according to civil protection.
Heatstroke and heat exhaustion caused disruptions in other sporting events.
