The summer of 2023 will be hot and dry. Faced with the increased risks of high temperatures, the government has put in place a “heat wave plan” containing several measures to be implemented in the coming months. Christophe Béchu, Minister for Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion, presented the latter on Thursday, June 8. Among the main precautions, we find the massive sending of SMS before an exceptional heat situation. These messages, transmitted via the FR-Alert system, will be sent to the inhabitants of the territories concerned to indicate the right actions to adopt.
Still in a logic of awareness, a communication campaign addressed to the general public will be responsible for recalling good practices related to the risk of drowning, the well-being of our pets, but also to work likely to improve the quality of life. in his accommodation. The prefectures are also responsible for identifying the refreshed sites and communicating them to the inhabitants. Other prevention messages, related to health but also forest and vegetation fires, will be broadcast in airports, train stations or road networks.
To prevent the risks associated with high temperatures, an annual check of nurseries and schools will be carried out to ensure the proper functioning of equipment. In the event of a heat wave, labor inspection controls will be reinforced, particularly in sectors where workers are particularly exposed to risks.
In addition, young people in universal national service (SNU) will be required to encourage vulnerable people to register on the registers kept by the municipalities, and will carry out awareness-raising actions on the causes of global warming.
Other measures have been put in place to prevent the risk of power cuts, which is increased during periods of high heat. What are they ?
Excessive heat can lead to overheating of underground cables that carry electricity in the ground. In addition, significant temperature variations during the day can also be responsible for equipment malfunction. “The heat wave can lead to a general blackout, on the electricity network and not in your home, where the equipment is better insulated and suffers less from the outside temperature”, articulates the official Engie website. If the electricity is generally restored in less than 24 hours, the supplier explains that “everything is done so that all the homes affected by the cut are repaired as quickly as possible”.
What are the measures announced in this regard by the Ministry of Ecological Transition?
The Minister for Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion announced a “strengthening of the monitoring and intervention resources of RTE and Enedis for periods of heat wave and drought”. Thus, emergency teams deployed by RTE and Enedis will be responsible for preventing the risk of power cuts.
“In concrete terms, the technicians have to dig trenches to repair the faulty cables, after having identified the precise point of the malfunction thanks to numerous sophisticated devices. This type of operation can take several days, but a secondary network then takes over. , minimizing the impact of the breakdown on your energy consumption”, concludes Engie.