France’s street music festival collides with record heatwave, alcohol ban imposed across red‑alert zones

PARIS, June 21 — France on Sunday prepared to host its annual street music festival in boiling heat, with a third of the country placed on red alert and alcohol consumption banned.

Every year on June 21, musicians take over France, filling bars, street corners and rooftops as revellers celebrate midsummer late into the night.

This year, however, the Fete de la Musique coincides with a ferocious heatwave, with a record 35 departments — roughly a third of the country — placed under the highest heat alert.

Weather service Meteo-France warned that temperatures could reach as high as 41C in some places.

While some cities have cancelled street events, celebrations in others — including Paris, Lyon and Strasbourg - will go ahead.

To minimise health risks and prevent potential disturbances to public order, the government announced a ban on alcohol consumption during the festivities in departments under red alert.

“Alcohol and high temperatures really do not mix well,” Health Minister Stephanie Rist told French daily Le Parisien.

Last year, around two million people attended the festival in Paris alone, many of them travelling from Britain.

To ensure public safety, authorities will deploy 4,800 police officers and gendarmes, along with 2,500 firefighters, in and around the capital.

Gatherings along the lower banks of the Seine will be prohibited to reduce the risk of people falling into the water.

According to AFP estimates, around 53 million people in France will be affected by the heat on Sunday, with a further 45 departments under orange alert.

The number of departments on red alert has reached a record high, surpassing the previous peak of 20 recorded on July 24-25, 2019.

The Atlantic port city of Nantes is offering free access to swimming pools and museums until the end of the red alert period. — AFP