France has just experienced a particularly remarkable February in terms of weather. According to Météo-France, rainfall was twice the seasonal average and temperatures exceeded the average observed between 1991 and 2020 by 3,5°C. This mild weather places February 2026 among the warmest winter months recorded in mainland France since records began in the 20th century.
During this month, not a single day recorded temperatures below normal. The end of the period was even marked by very high values for the season, exceeding 20°C across a large part of the country and locally reaching over 25°C in the Southwest.
A winter marked by heavy rains and floods
Rainfall has also been exceptional, driven by a series of disturbances and storms that have swept across the country since the beginning of the year. This meteorological winter ranks among the wettest since 1900, with rainfall exceeding the average by approximately 35%. Several rivers, notably the Loire, the Garonne, and the Charente, have experienced significant flooding, causing widespread inundation in various regions.
This situation led to an unprecedented number of flood warnings: eighteen days were placed under red alert, a record since the system was implemented in 2006. In total, forty-nine days of orange or red alert were recorded this winter, more than double the usual average. Scientists point out, however, that while recent winters have been increasingly mild, changes in rainfall remain more difficult to directly link to climate change.
