Record 42.6C in Paris as Europe heatwave hits blistering peak

Yahoo – AFP, Stuart WILLIAMS, July 25, 2019

In the sweltering French capital, tourists and locals alike made a beeline for
fountains (AFP Photo/Bertrand GUAY)

Paris (AFP) - Paris on Thursday baked in an all-time high temperature of 42.6 degrees Celsius (108.7 Fahrenheit) as a ferocious heatwave smashed records across northern Europe, sparking concerns about public health and causing new misery for rail travellers.

As records also tumbled in Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany, Paris beat the previous top of 40.4C set in July 1947.

Trains have been slowed in several European countries to avoid damage to the railway networks. French national operator SNCF urged travellers to delay journeys planned for Thursday, while German railway company Deutsche Bahn offered travellers a chance to change tickets free of charge.

In the sweltering French capital, authorities warned people to keep an eye on those living alone.

At the same time, the scorching weather spelled misery for millions of commuters on public transport.

"It's so hot in the metro, it's unbearable. There are so many people, no air conditioning and everyone is on top of one other," said Paris commuter Petra Ulm, 34, a clinical researcher.

The heatwave, which was expected to ease up on Friday as rain and thunderstorms move in, again focused public attention on the problems caused by climate change.

The heatwave, which is expected to ease up on Friday as rain and thunderstorms 

move in, re-focused public attention on the problems caused by climate change

(AFP Photo/LOIC VENANCE)

'Great day on the beach'

In Britain, temperatures reached 38.1C in Cambridge, only the second time temperatures over 100 Fahrenheit have been recorded in the UK, weather services said. It was still below the UK's all-time high of 38.5C.

Those lucky enough to be by the sea could still enjoy the weather.

"It's obviously not so good for some people, but if you've got the day off and young kids then it's great for a day on the beach," said Graham Clarke, 50, an insurance agent, enjoying the sands of Broadstairs in southeast England.

In the Netherlands, a new high Thursday of 40.4C in the south broke a record dating back to 1944.

In Amsterdam, crowds jumped into a central square fountain, while municipal workers sprayed water on bridges over the city's famed canals to stop metal structures deforming in the heat.

"I'm just trying not to move too much," said Serona Methorst, a 19-year-old Dutch student sitting under a tree with friends. "We are so used to a colder climate, people are really disturbed by this weather."

In the centre of the country, Dutch police jokingly urged criminals not to plan any heists during the heatwave.

"It's tough to work now, not just for you but also for us," the police posted in a Facebook message. "Stay at home, turn on the air-conditioning."

Even the animals like baby elephant Ben Long needed to take a cooling dip 

at the zoo in Leipzig in eastern Germany (AFP Photo/Jens Kalaene)

On Thursday, Germany again hit a national record of 41.5 C in Lingen, western Germany.

The Grohnde nuclear plant in western Germany will temporarily shut down on Friday as a way to protect the environment, its operator said. Water used to cool the reactor is poured back into rivers and the shutdown is meant to protect already overheated river ecosystems.

Belgium on Thursday also reached a new record high of 40.6 degrees Celsius, on the Kleine-Brogel military base, in northeastern Belgium.

Two suspected drug smugglers had to call police in the Belgian port city of Antwerp after becoming trapped in a shipping container filled with cocaine, prosecutors said.

Train disruptions

Eurostar and Thalys rail services from Brussels to London and Paris also experienced major delays and cancellations after a cable failure the day earlier.

"I ask everyone who can avoid or delay their journeys to do so," said French Environment Minister Elisabeth Borne, advising workers who could do their jobs at home not to go to their offices.

The northern third of France, including Paris, was under a red alert while the rest of the country had a yellow warning and water-use restrictions were in force.

In Austria, a three-year-old child died of dehydration after falling asleep in a car parked in full sunshine at the family farm, local authorities said.

Advice on avoiding heatstroke and dehydration in a heatwave. (AFP Photo/

Sophie RAMIS)

'Look after others'

France remains haunted by the early summer of 2003 when 15,000 deaths were blamed on the heat and the authorities were hit for not mobilising fast enough.

"We need to take care of ourselves but above all others, especially those who are alone, and be able to detect the first symptoms of heatstroke," said Prime Minister Edouard Philippe.

Local authorities have placed restrictions on water usage in many areas due to drought-like conditions that have seen ground and river water levels fall dramatically.

A June 26-28 blast of heat in France was four degrees Celsius hotter than an equally rare June heatwave would have been in 1900, the World Weather Attribution (WWA) said this month.

One study by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology said the deadly weeks-long heatwave across northern Europe in 2018 would have been statistically impossible without climate change.

Temperatures in Paris and some other notably hot cities on Thursday ☀️🥵 pic.twitter.com/zvsrDoGeJ4

— AFP news agency (@AFP) 25 juli 2019

Related Article:

20TH KRYON SUMMER LIGHT CONFERENCE, US (7), June 2-4, 2017 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) (Text version "The State of the Earth")

"A Summary" – Apr 2, 2011 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll)

(Subjects: Religion, Shift of Human Consciousness, 2012, Intelligent/Benevolent Design, EU, South America, 5 Currencies, Water Cycle (Heat up, Mini Ice Ace, Oceans, Fish, Earthquakes ..), Middle East, Internet, Israel, Dictators, Palestine, US, Japan (Quake/Tsunami Disasters , People, Society ...), Nuclear Power Revealed, Hydro Power, Geothermal Power, Moon, Financial Institutes (Recession, Realign integrity values ..) , China, North Korea, Global Unity,..... etc.) - (Text version)

“… The Weather

Let's talk about the weather. We retreat to exactly what we told you before in this very chair. The water cycle is a cooling cycle, not a heating cycle. You're going to have more severe winters and storms. It's going to get colder. But it gets warmer before it gets colder. That is the cycle, and it has always been the cycle. You can see it in the rings of the trees and the cores of the ice. Don't let your scientists pull the political wool over your eyes for their own purposes. Start seeing these things for what they are. It's a recurring cycle based on four Earth alignment attributes, including the wobble (the precession). You're in this cycle. Prepare.

The beginnings of it will be with you from now at least until the end of the 2012 36-year window, and you can watch it work. The first thing that happens is that the ice melts at the poles, but not completely. It's the way it has happened before. As the redistribution of weight from the poles to the oceans of the earth takes place, the weight is redistributed to the crust, and that creates earthquakes. And the earthquakes that will be the most powerful are the ones that are closest to the poles. We told you that some time ago. So it's not a mystery that suddenly you have some of the most powerful earthquakes that you've ever had. Not only that, but a cooling ocean creates larger storms.

What do the conspiracists do with all this? "See? We're doomed. Here it comes," they say. "Here it comes! The end is here!" Twenty-two years ago, we gave you the information that is happening today. We told you about the weather. We told you to get ready for it, but we still haven't told you why the water cycle is needed. We've hinted at it since it is very controversial, and we'll lose many readers right here and now. Here's the prediction: The scientists are going to laugh and biologists are going to scratch their heads and roll their eyes.

The Refreshing of the Cycle of Life

When you change the temperature of the waters of the planet, it changes the life cycle of the ocean and it eventually renews itself. The life cycle of the planet has a limit to its viability over time. There has to be a refreshing of the very cycle of life, and this is what the water cycle does. Are there any places you've seen too many fish lately? Yes. Millions of salmon in the north. Odd that it was in Alaska, isn't it? Alaska is very close to the poles where the water temperature is being felt first. Oh, again the experts will tell you that this is not the reason. It's about hatcheries and rivers. But nobody predicted this, did they? Science is fast to give you reasons, but slow to give you logic in advance. They always seem to be surprised.

We are saying things we haven't said before. Again, watch for this, an actual change in the life cycle of the planet's oceans because of the water temperature shift. Biologists are going to have to start redesigning the paradigm of how everything works, including reefs, ocean bottoms, and how plankton survive and reproduce. Listen, this is not the first time that the life cycle has been refreshed! But again, this may take generations of humanity to complete. In the process, you may again lose species. This is normal. Gaia is slow, and Humans are impatient. Your textbooks may someday tell of how naive humanity was back in 2011 when they tried to blame weather changes on everything but a natural cycle. Now you know why there is a water cycle.

So what does that tell you about Gaia? Gaia is beginning the cycle of refreshing life on over-fished oceans. It tells you that in the cracks, there is love and caring about the Humans who live on the earth. There's a reason you're here. There's a plan here, and a benevolent Universe and quantum energy with intelligent design. All is there for you, precious, sacred Human Being. …”