France, June 20 -- France's weather service has placed 35 of the country's 101 departments on red alert for heat from midday Sunday, the highest number to date to be put on its maximum warning.

The alert, which requires authorities to take emergency precautions to protect the public, extends over the entire greater Paris region and down into the south-west.

Another 45 departments are on orange heatwave alert, the second-highest warning.

Ten north-central departments were also on alert for violent storms forecast to arrive on Saturday evening.

The heatwave, which extends over much of western Europe, is already the second of the year, after a scorching week in May broke records across the continent.

Why is Europe heating twice as fast ...