France hits record heat as Paris landmarks cut hours

France recorded its hottest day on Tuesday, with extreme heat forcing Paris landmarks to shorten visits and disrupting daily life across parts of Europe. The episode has put pressure on schools, transit systems and health authorities as forecasters warned that more records could fall.

Meteo France said the country’s national thermal indicator, an average of readings from 30 weather stations, reached 29.8 C, or 85.6 F. That topped the previous marks of 29.4 C, or 84.9 F, set during heat waves in August 2003 and July 2019.

The French weather service said more record temperatures were expected, including readings that could exceed previous highs for any time of year. It said the heat wave had reached a “plateau of severity,” with high temperatures persisting through the night as well as the day.

Paris sites shorten visiting hours

The Eiffel Tower closed in the afternoon rather than remaining open late, as it typically does. The Louvre said it would close two hours early from Wednesday through Saturday.

Louvre officials said the museum’s historic building has some natural resilience but remains exposed to heat and is not adequately adapted to climate change. They said heat builds up most late in the day and is worsened by large visitor numbers.

Schools, public transportation and sporting events have also been affected in France, where air conditioning is not widespread. Meteo France said individual weather stations also set records, with daytime temperatures in some towns rising well above 40 C, or 104 F.

In Paris, roofer Gin Dujardin told the Associated Press that the conditions had forced him to stop work on zinc-covered roofs because the metal had become too hot and welds would not hold.

Health risks rise across Europe

Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said France recorded 40 drowning deaths over the past week as people sought relief in rivers and other bodies of water despite official warnings about unsupervised swimming. He said most of those who drowned were young people.

The current heat wave has drawn comparisons with France’s August 2003 crisis, when an estimated 15,000 people died, many of them older residents in homes and care facilities without air conditioning.

The European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service says Europe is warming faster than any other continent, with temperatures rising at twice the global average since the 1980s. The World Health Organization’s Europe office said this month that more than 200,000 people in Europe died from heat-related causes over the past four years and that most of those deaths were preventable.

Britain and Spain issue warnings

The heat also stretched into the United Kingdom and Spain. Weather agencies in both countries issued red alerts, as France did, over risks from extreme temperatures.

In Britain, hundreds of schools planned to close or end the day early, and train operators reduced service because of concerns about heat affecting rail lines. The Met Office issued a heat warning for Wednesday and Thursday and said June’s daily temperature record could be broken, with forecasts around 37 C in southern England and up to 39 C in London or southern England.

Spain’s weather agency, Aemet, issued red alerts for temperatures of 44 C in southern Andalusia and warned of 40 C readings in Cantabria and the Basque Country. Aemet meteorologist Rubén del Campo said Spain’s heat waves are becoming more frequent, longer and less confined to July and August because of climate change.

Copernicus said 2024 was the hottest year on record globally and in Europe, and that Europe experienced its second-highest number of heat-stress days. Scientists say climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, especially in southeastern Europe, raising health and wildfire risks.

This story draws on original reporting from Fortune.