France bans alcohol at music festival events under red heatwave alert

Annual street parties attended by millions ordered to help “preserve” healthcare services in 40C (104F) heat. France bans alcohol at music festival events under red headwave alert Copyright current_year BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. Copyright current_year BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. Held on the summer solstice each year, the Fête de la Musique sees musicians take over the streets with free performances and parties stretch into the night Revellers dance in the street during Fete De La Musique 2025 as bands and DJs play on streets across the French capital. France bans alcohol at music festival events under red heatwave alert France has banned alcohol at some events at a massive national music festival on Sunday as a heatwave pushes temperatures towards record levels. Annual Fête de la Musique celebrations draw millions to the streets across France. But with a third of the country covered by the most serious heatwave warnings, the government has banned alcohol consumption in public places under the red alerts. "For all events organised by the state and its agencies, instructions have been given not to offer alcohol," the office of Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said. Temperatures of 39-40C (102-104F) are expected from the southwest through the Paris region into Burgundy on Sunday, with some areas possibly reaching 41C. Temperatures have been forecast to peak on Monday, and authorities have warned they could match historic highs. The government has called for limits on alcohol consumption "to preserve emergency and healthcare services and allow medical staff to focus on caring for the most vulnerable". An intense heatwave has been developing over Europe with many places seeing temperatures 10-15C above the seasonal average BBC Weather graphic showing Europe with temperatures into the 30s Celsius in many major European cities, with 40C shown for Bordeaux and Paris The heatwave has been going for days and has disrupted the country, forcing the cancellation of dozens of trains and the suspension of classes. France's weather service Météo-France said it was "uncertain" how long the heatwave, which has been estimated to affect about three quarters of the population, would last. To help Parisians and tourists cope with the heat, authorities are keeping parks and gardens in the French capital open through the night. Fête de la Musique has been going for more than 40 years, and is always held on the summer solstice. Last year, about two million people attended events in Paris. A man drinks from a water bottle with a sunny sky overhead and a blurred view of the Westminster skyline in the background Amber extreme heat warning issued as 35C heatwave approaches People walk around a fountain, with blue sky and bright sunshine in the background. One woman is holding an umbrella for shade; other people are wearing sunhats and carrying bottles of water. Why temperature records are being not only broken but smashed A woman with brown hair stares directly at the camera wearing a red bandeau, using a pink and yellow fan, with sunglasses on and a white shell necklace. In the background other festival goers are blurred How to keep cool at your summer festivals Lost property director Steve Wood collects hundreds of valuable items at music festivals. The festival's first day saw torrential rain throughout the afternoon, but there was warm weather to start off Saturday. The Someone You Loved singer headlines the main stage at Isle of Wight Festival. Sibling rivals are lining up for different teams at the World Cup, with seven pairs of brothers in total at this tournament. Experts urge people to avoid going out at the hottest time of the day as temperatures soar. The man was allegedly struck by his 81-year-old opponent, who has since been arrested, the public prosecutor says. An amber heat-health alert for the South East has been issued by the UK Health Security Agency. The date when another heatwave could hit the south-west of England has been shared by an expert.