The brief period of cooler, lighter air is about to evaporate. While the heavy humidity has lifted for many, weather forecasters are already tracking a rapid return of extreme heat expected to build over the weekend and peak next week. The looming event threatens to plunge the country back into sweltering conditions just days after a historic July.
Eight Departments Still on Orange Alert
The current danger has not yet fully passed for the southeast. Météo-France is maintaining its orange heatwave vigilance for eight departments at least through Friday. The affected areas include Alpes-Maritimes, Ardèche, Drôme, Gard, Var, Vaucluse, and the two departments of Corsica. For the rest of the country, the calm is deceptive and expected to last only until the start of next week, despite an initial temperature spike over the weekend.
Iberian Blast to Push Temperatures to 40°C
Starting Tuesday, the national thermal indicator is expected to cross the heatwave threshold once again. The culprit is a rapid surge of very hot air originating from Spain and North Africa, propelled by a south-to-southwest flow. Météo-France predicts that temperatures ranging from 35 to 40 degrees Celsius will become widespread across much of the country, with the South-West likely to be hit particularly hard.
The most critical day is currently forecast for Wednesday, August 12—coinciding with a solar eclipse—when the mercury could soar to 37 degrees. Only Brittany and the tip of the Cotentin Peninsula are expected to be spared from this new blast. The exact duration and final intensity of this heatwave remain difficult to determine at this stage.
Record-Breaking July Sets the Stage
This new heatwave follows a record-shattering month. July 2026 has been officially recorded as the hottest and one of the driest months in France since measurements began in 1900. With an average temperature of 24.9°C, last month erased the previous records set during the historic heatwave of August 2003 (24.8°C) and July 2006 (24.4°C). Météo-France confirmed the data on Tuesday, highlighting the intensifying effects of climate change.
