A heat wave gripping Europe has forced tourist attractions in Paris to reduce their operating hours one after another.
According to AFP on the 12th, the operator of the Eiffel Tower shortened its hours over the past weekend (the 11th and 12th), closing early at 4 p.m. due to forecasts of high temperatures. The Eiffel Tower, which draws 7 million visitors annually, stays open until around midnight during peak season, but this time it prioritized the safety of visitors and staff.
The Eiffel Tower also closed early late last month during a heat wave that approached a high of 41 degrees, and its operations were disrupted again after about two weeks. The Louvre Museum moved up its viewing hours to 4 p.m. from the 10th to the 13th, and the Musée d'Orsay to 5 p.m. from the 11th to the 15th.
At the Tour de France, the world's largest road cycling race, the early hill section of Stage 9 (Chinon to Châteauroux, 185.5 km), held on the 12th, was removed, shortening the route by 30 km. The measure came after a top-level heat wave warning was issued for the Corrèze region. It was the first time the race, which began in 1903, has shortened a course because of heat.
This year's race, which started in Barcelona, Spain, saw temperatures exceed 35 degrees every day as it passed through northern Spain and southern France. Belgian rider Tim Merlier, who won Stage 8, said temperatures had exceeded 35 degrees all week and that it was difficult even to obtain water, ice, and drinks among the support vehicles.
In France, top-level heat wave warnings were issued for more than a quarter of the mainland, and the heat is expected to continue until the 14th. As the risk of wildfires grew, several regions including Yvelines canceled their Bastille Day fireworks events on the 14th.
In connection with the earlier June heat wave, excess deaths tallied in France, Belgium, Spain, and the Netherlands exceeded 4,700, and authorities said the final figure could rise further. According to the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), the average temperature in Western Europe last month was 20.74 degrees, more than 3 degrees higher than the 1991-2020 average, marking the highest June temperature on record.
The figure surpassed the previous record set in June last year within just one year. Globally, June was also the second-hottest month on record, and the global sea surface temperature that month also hit a record June high since observations began. Europe is now going through its third heat wave in three months since May. C3S said that increasingly frequent and intense heat waves are heightening the risks to people, ecosystems, and infrastructure.
