The heatwave intensified further today (July 8) in France, testing the resilience of the population and firefighters, who are battling multiple wildfires. The fires broke out earlier than last year and are proving to be more destructive.

Approximately 78,000 acres of land were reduced to ashes in the country during the first eight days of July, compared with just over 44,000 acres burned during the entire month of July 2025, according to data from the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), analyzed by the French Press Agency (AFP). Strengthening winds have further complicated firefighters’ efforts to contain the blazes.

A 22-year-old volunteer firefighter lost his life today in the French Alps while fighting a forest fire raging on a steep mountainside.

Temperatures above 40°C

High temperatures are spreading northward and eastward, with 67 departments placed under an orange heat alert. Tomorrow, five additional departments will be added to the warning list, according to Météo-France, which forecasts that this “severe and persistent heatwave” is likely to continue “until next weekend.”

This afternoon, temperatures frequently reached between 38°C and 41°C in southeastern France.

Record July temperatures were recorded at Montpellier airport (40.7°C) and in the city of Perpignan (40.7°C).

This is the third heatwave to hit France in less than two months, following an unusually early heatwave in late May and another in the second half of June. Considered a consequence of global warming, more than half of the 53 heatwaves recorded in France since 1947 have occurred since 2010.

Once again, France’s national railway operator, SNCF, canceled train services today as extreme heat affected the functioning of overhead power lines that supply trains with electricity.

Particularly vulnerable during heatwaves, food delivery workers will no longer operate during the hottest hours of the day in areas under a red alert. Uber Eats and Deliveroo announced the measure today to AFP, following a request from the industry.