France bans alcohol at Fête de la Musique as record red heatwave alerts cover 35 departments

Heatwave of exceptional intensity

On Sunday 21 June, France's Fête de la Musique coincided with an exceptional heatwave. Météo-France placed 35 departments under a red heatwave alert from midday, a record surpassing the previous high of 20 departments set in July 2019. The agency described the episode as "d'intensité exceptionnelle" (of exceptional intensity) and comparable to the heatwaves of 2003 and 2019, with temperatures reaching 39–40°C widely and possibly 41°C locally.

An exceptional heatwave episode, similar to those of July 2019 and August 2003, but of as-yet uncertain duration.

An additional 45 departments are under orange alert, covering roughly 26 million people, about three-quarters of the population.

Disrupted celebrations

The heatwave has thrown the annual music festival into disarray. Several cities, including Auch, Nanterre, Châteauroux, Poitiers, and Brive-la-Gaillarde, cancelled their planned concerts. Others, such as Bayonne, Angoulême, and the Gironde department, pushed events into the evening when temperatures are expected to ease. Major centres, Paris, Lyon, and Strasbourg, have chosen to maintain the festivities, with Paris mayor Emmanuel Grégoire citing the need to "order and frame it rather than suffer it." The interior minister Laurent Nuñez said there was "no general cancellation" of the event.

Alcohol ban and security

The government activated an interministerial crisis cell and banned alcohol consumption on public roads and in public spaces in all red-alert departments. In Paris, the ban runs from 7am Sunday to 7am Monday. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu's office instructed state-run events not to serve alcohol.

For all events organised by the state and its agencies, instructions have been given not to offer alcohol.

Health minister Stéphanie Rist stressed the danger.

Alcohol and high temperatures really don't mix.

The police prefecture also prohibited gatherings and undeclared marches on the low quays of the Seine from Sunday 3pm to Monday 8am.

Paris mobilises

Paris is deploying 4,800 police and gendarmes, 2,500 firefighters, and reinforcing its river fleet with 10 boats from the fluvial brigade and 8 from the fire service to prevent drownings. Two outdoor sporting events in the capital were banned, and a further ten were cancelled by organisers after talks with authorities. In Alsace, the entire weekend's marathon des vignobles, which had 7,500 registered participants, was scrapped.

Looking ahead

Temperatures are forecast to peak on Monday, and Météo-France warned that the red alert could be extended to additional departments currently under orange. Parks in Paris will remain open through the night to offer relief.