This Friday, June 17, 9 departments of the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region are placed on heat wave vigilance, including the Rhône, which is on orange alert.
Météo-France placed a total of 14 departments on Friday in heat wave red vigilance and 56 in orange vigilance, in the face of the heat wave of “exceptional” precocity which affects France this week.
About three-quarters of the population (45 million people) are thus affected by this orange and red heatwave alert.
Red heat wave vigilance, the highest level of the “national heat wave plan”, corresponds both to an exceptional weather event and to a health alert justifying “maximum mobilization”.
The phenomenon is due to a depression centered off Portugal which “contributes to transporting masses of extremely hot air from Spain” while an anticyclonic ridge contributes to the sunny weather which reinforces this heat, “said François Jobard. , forecaster at Météo-France.
Historically early, the heat wave hitting France is particularly worrying. The Heatwave Plan, triggered from June 1 to September 15, 2022, defines 4 alert levels depending on weather conditions. For each level of alert, specific actions are implemented to protect the most vulnerable people (elderly people, children, infants, people with disabilities, pregnant women, etc.).
This Friday, June 17, the Rhône department went on orange heat wave alert. The period of intense heat, which exceeds departmental thresholds for three days and three consecutive nights, is likely to constitute a health risk, particularly for fragile or overexposed populations. From this Saturday, June 18, the wind will shift to the south, reinforcing the feeling of heat in the coming days.
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