Power cuts hit France amid record 43C temperatures

France recorded its hottest day since national records began in 1947 on Wednesday as an intense early summer heatwave continued to grip much of western Europe, triggering power outages, wildfire warnings and widespread disruption.

The national temperature indicator, which measures average day and night temperatures across dozens of locations, reached 30C, surpassing the previous record of 29.8C set a day earlier. Temperatures exceeded 40C in Paris and many other regions, while parts of western...