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Europe heatwave 2019: France braces for temperatures up to 40C as intense heat sweeps continent

More than half of France has been placed on high alert by meteorologists as an intense heatwave sweeps across Europe.

Parts of the country will see temperatures soar as high as 40C as forecasters set the heat warning level at orange – the second highest intensity on its four-level categorisation system for potentially dangerous conditions.

The warning comes as the country enters its summer tourist season, with thousands of holiday makers expected to flock to France.

In Paris, charity organisations patrolled the streets to provide homeless people with water, while local authorities organised air-conditioned public places where people could seek shelter from the heat.

A man cools himself down in a pond at the Trocadero esplanade in Paris (AFP/Getty Images)
A man cools himself down in a pond at the Trocadero esplanade in Paris (AFP/Getty Images)

French education minister Jean-Michel Blanquer, deciding it was too hot to study, ordered national exams taken by students heading to high school to be postponed from Thursday and Friday to next week.

International football federation Fifa could face implementing heat precautions at the Women's World Cup, which France is hosting. The precautions include holding cooling breaks during matches and postponing games if the heat is too intense.

Women's World Cup matches are scheduled every day this week, except Wednesday and Sunday. Luckily, most were set to be played at night.

France introduced a heat watch warning system after a long, deadly heatwave in August 2003.

Youngsters sunbathe and cool themselves down in a pond at the Trocadero esplanade in Paris (AFP/Getty Images)
Youngsters sunbathe and cool themselves down in a pond at the Trocadero esplanade in Paris (AFP/Getty Images)

The highest temperatures in more than half a century eventually were estimated to have caused 15,000 heat-related deaths, many of older people left in city apartments and retirement homes without air conditioning.

French President Emmanuel Macron said that vigilance was the watchword for the week.

"As you know, at times like these, sick people, pregnant women, infants and elderly people are the most vulnerable. So we must be vigilant with them and have prevention measures in place in order to intervene as quickly as possible," Mr Macron said.

The sun shines in the sky over the Eiffel Tower in Paris (REUTERS)
The sun shines in the sky over the Eiffel Tower in Paris (REUTERS)

French health minister Agnes Buzyn said that "everything is ready" in retirement homes, hospitals and transportation systems.

She warned: "Yet when people are fragile, even when everything is organised, there's always a higher mortality rate.”

Meteorologists said hot winds from the Sahara Desert brought the scorching weather to Europe. Similar heat is expected in Belgium, Switzerland and Germany.

In Germany, temperatures above 40C are possible in some places on Wednesday, topping the country's previous June record of 38.2C, set in Frankfurt in 1947.