" Newsweek claims in the recent article, “Hundreds Die in Record-Breaking Europe Heat Wave: How Long Will It Last,” that the current deadly European heat wave demonstrates the growing dangers of climate change, suggesting that rising greenhouse gas emissions are making heat domes more frequent and more dangerous. This is false. The real story is not climate change, rather it is Europe’s decades-long failure to allow its people to equip themselves with the most effective protection against extreme heat: air conditioning."
" Fresh rooms against the heat wave
More on the theme :
Dolores Mazzola and Franck Grassaud
Published on23/08/2023 at 11:28
Reading time : 3 min
To cope with the heat wave that has been raging for several days, municipalities are trying to offer a little freshness to the inhabitants. Air-conditioned rooms are open in small towns or villages, this is particularly the case in Meximieux in the Ain.
Faced with the persistent heat wave on France, preventive measures are multiplying. This Wednesday, August 23, the red vigilance was extended to the department of Ain.
Fresh rooms
But how are small municipalities organized when there is no air-conditioned shopping center on the horizon or open cinema? In the Ain, the city of Meximieux has made available since Sunday noon the hall of its theater. It’s 22 degrees. Ideal for rest, a break or lunch in the fridge. Some employees will only stay in this room for lunch.
A cool room in Meximieux (22/8/23) • © F.Grassaud / France tv
“It feels really good, it helps the body to pick up the pace of the day,” said one resident. A popular initiative, because everyone can see the effects of the hot weather. "We’re in a sub-regime. You want to do things, but the body says no! "Explain another resident. “I’ve been coming here since Sunday and I find that on my way home in the evening, I can withstand the temperature of the apartment much better,” said a third
This air-conditioned space is accessible to all during the hottest hours of the day, between 12 and 18 hours. The elected representatives take turns and are amazed at the immediate success of the initiative.
"It took it right away. By Sunday at noon, we had people coming out of the church. In the afternoon, families came with children, "says Régine Giroud, deputy mayor of Meximieux.
A few kilometers from Meximieux, the small town of Saint-Jean-de-Niost also offers a fresh shelter to its inhabitants. A small air-conditioned room does the trick. Mayor Béatrice Dalmaz first thought of the elders and the fragile. “Two hours here is always it won!” said the elected official. A parenthesis to bring down the temperature of the body while the mercury does not stop climbing.
Scorching days in perspective
On Tuesday, the heat wave intensified over most of France. Wednesday noon, given the duration over several days of these strong heat with little respite at night, the red vigilance heatwave will be extended to 19 departments over a wide diagonal of the Gers to the Ain. Maximum temperatures will reach 40 to 42 degrees, or locally more, with likely record highs, warns Météo-France.
In Auvergne Rhône-Alpes, more than half of the departments are concerned. The Rhône, the Drôme, the Ardèche, the Haute-Loire, the Ain, the Loire and the Isère are at the highest level of vigilance for Wednesday and Thursday. Three Auvergne departments, the Allier, the Puy-de-Dôme and the Cantal, are in orange vigilance.
Just set, the heat record for a late summer is already broken: Tuesday, August 22 was the warmest day on record in France after a 15 August, announced Météo-France this Wednesday morning, while the peak of the heat wave is not yet reached. The national thermal indicator (a daily average of the average air temperature recorded at 30 weather stations representative of the territory) reached 27.06 degrees on Tuesday, the forecaster said. Previously, this value had only been reached or exceeded 24 times in France since 1947, mainly over the last 20 years, and never so late."
PS France has different national policies:
cheers