The heat wave currently hitting France has now surpassed, in duration, that of the summer of 2003. Beginning on July 28, the episode reaches its 17th consecutive day this Thursday, compared to 16 days for the heat wave of 2003, according to Météo-France.
This wave thus becomes the third longest ever recorded in the country. It remains shorter than those of July 2006, which lasted 21 days, and July 1983, which lasted 23 days. In terms of intensity, however, the record for the year remains held by the episode at the end of June 2026.
Temperatures close to 40°C
The current heatwave has already reached two peaks, the first on July 29 and the second on Wednesday, August 12. Another particularly intense episode is expected on Thursday in the western half of the country, then on Friday in the eastern half, with temperatures approaching 40°C in many regions.
A gradual drop in temperatures is expected to begin on Friday along the English Channel coast. This will continue on Saturday before gradually spreading across the entire country on Sunday. However, the episode will only be considered over once there has been a sufficiently sustained decrease in average national temperatures.
This is the 54th heatwave recorded in France since 1947. Half of these episodes have occurred since 2010, a trend directly linked to climate change caused by human activities. The summer of 2026 is already marked by three heatwaves in less than two months, following an exceptionally early first episode observed at the end of May.
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