France heatwave causes first major blackout, leaving 68,000 homes without power

Europe’s record-breaking heatwave has caused a major power outage in northwestern France, leaving around 68,000 households without electricity on Wednesday.

Authorities said the disruption was linked to a transformer failure on the electricity grid caused by extreme temperatures, but no injuries were reported. The outage occurred around 9 pm on Tuesday in Ergué-Gabéric, near the city of Quimper in Brittany.

French grid operators RTE and Enedis worked overnight to restore power, but officials said full recovery may not happen until the end of Wednesday at the earliest.

The wider heatwave had already disrupted electricity services, with up to 106,000 customers losing power late Tuesday as France experienced its hottest day on record.

Finistère was among 58 French departments placed under the highest red heat alert on Wednesday, with temperatures expected to reach 39°C to 41°C from Brittany to the Paris region.

Experts say the extreme heat has been intensified by atmospheric conditions trapping hot air over Europe for prolonged periods, with climate change worsening the impact of such events.