France saw record temperatures for September hit the country, notably the south west, amid a heatwave drifting up from Morocco, the Meteo-France weather service said.
The thermometer hit 39.1 degrees Celsius (102.4 degrees Fahrenheit) at Mont-de-Marsan in the southwestern Landes department and 39C at nearby Dax.
Regional capital Bordeaux saw 37.5C — topping a previous September high of 37C in 1987 — while Tarbes further south in the Pyrenees saw 37.2C, more than a degree up on the 35.8C seen in 1964.
Neighbouring Pau managed to beat that with a baking 38.9C, easily surpassing the 36.3C it had seen in 1970.
Even some 600 kilometres (370 miles) further north, in Nantes, temperatures were a barely less scorching 35.1C, unheard of for the area in September.
France saw three heatwaves between June and August, the result of an air depression in the Atlantic Ocean as scientists lined up to blame the phenomenon at least partly on climate change.
This summer was France’s second-hottest on record with average temperatures 2.3C above the norm, a slew of large-scale wildfires which ravaged much of the southwest and widespread drought as well as several severe storms.
Meteo-France added that some areas, including the lower Rhone valley, would likely see heavy rain and intermittent violent storms.
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