Meteo France has placed the Alpes Maritimes on an Orange alert for heat until at least 3pm tomorrow. At the moment, the Var remains on Yellow Alert early this evening. Meteo France are saying that temperatures are generally rising today and tomorrow in the Alpes Maritimes. The minimum temperatures are frequently expected to be between 22 and 26 degrees on the coast and on the plains near the coast. Maximum temperatures are expected to reach 32 to 35 degrees on the coast of the Alpes Maritimes, 33 to 37 degrees inland outside mountainous areas. Temperatures will remain high on Friday before a drop in temperatures expected on Saturday. Virtually all of the rest of France is on Orange alert, with just 3 departments in Brittany under no alert and ten departments along the south coast and inland in the south being under either no warning or a yellow warning.
A 45 year old free-diver has been taken to hospital after becoming ill off Nice today. Reports say that the man had dived to a depth of 78 metres. Thirteen rescue workers were said to have attended the scene before he was transported, still conscious, to the Emergency department of the Pasteur Hospital 2 in Nice.
Pompiers are attempting to control a fire which broke out in undergrowth near Roquebrune-sur-Argens earlier today. The fire was spotted by a lookout who summoned help. Two water bombing aircraft have been used so far in the operation.
A 19 metre boat caught fire off Les Issambres in the Var this morning. The two occupants of the boat were rescued by nearby boats and are unharmed. The municipality of Roquebrune-sur-Argens closed several beaches as a precaution because of potential pollution. The reasons for the fire are currently being investigated.
An 18 year old from Nice has been sent to prison for an attempted robbery at a petrol station. The man threatened cashiers with a weapon at the Beausoleil service area on the A8 on the 6th of July. The cashiers didn’t hand over the money and the suspect was subsequently tracked down to a friend’s house in La Turbie where he was arrested.
The French ministry of Sports has called for a renewed education campaign to inform people of the risk of drowning. According to government figures, over 40 people drowned in France during the recent heatwave at the end of June.
The French government has announced financial aid for farmers in the Alpes Maritimes who have been affected by the recent drought. 24 departments, including the Var, had already been included in measures announced on the first of July and a further 9 departments have now been added.
A glider pilot has escaped with only minor injuries after a crash landing in the Alpes de Haute Provence. The 59 year old man of Swiss nationality was rescued after he made an emergency landing on a mountain 1,900 metres above sea level. The glider was virtually destroyed in the accident but the pilot suffered only a minor wrist injury and rescuers described his survival as “a real miracle”.
Wine production in France will be between 6 and 13 percent lower this year because of the ongoing heatwave. The Ministry of Agriculture says that vines in many areas have been hit by hot weather and estimates suggest that the harvest will be one of the lowest for the past five years.
BUSINESS
The IMF has reduced its growth forecasts for the global economy for this year and next year. It predicts growth of 3.2% in 2019, down from its April forecast of 3.3%. Growth next year is expected to be 3.5%, although that’s below its earlier forecasts of 3.6%.
Swiss bank UBS has reported a better than expected second quarter profit of $1.4bn. Meanwhile, profits at Spanish banking group Santander fell by 18% in the second quarter as the cost of redundancy payments ate into profits. However, the bank still reported profits of €1.4bn, ahead of analysts’ expectations.
Heathrow airport has said that passenger numbers have increased. Almost 39 million people flew from the airport in the first six months of this year, an increase of 1.8% on the same period in 2018.
The Serious Fraud Office in the UK has opened an investigation into the activities of banknote printer De La Rue group. A statement by the SFO said the investigation is in relation to suspected corruption in South Sudan.
UK supermarket sales over the last three months fell by 0.5% compared to the same period last year, according to data firm Kantar. It said that the reduction in sales, the first for three years, was down to record spending last year on traditional summer favourites like ice cream and alcohol.
SPORT
Football… Chelsea have beaten Barcelona 2-1 in a pre-season friendly in Japan with goals from Tammy Abraham and Ross Barkley. Ivan Rakitic scored in injury time for Barcelona.
Cricket… England fast bowler James Anderson has been ruled out of the Ashes warm-up Test against Ireland at Lord's. Anderson injured his calf playing for Lancashire on 2 July and now faces a race to be fit for the opening Ashes fixture on 1 August.
Tour de France… Australian rider Caleb Ewan won stage 16 of the Tour de France today as Julian Alaphilippe retained the overall lead. Defending champion Geraint Thomas crashed when his gears jammed but managed to finish the stage to stay 95 seconds behind Alaphilippe. Temperatures hit 40 degrees on the stage.
Sport Business… Forbes Magazine's annual list of the world's most valuable sports teams has been published. NFL team the Dallas Cowboys, valued at $5bn, remain top of the list, with the New York Yankees Major League Baseball team second at $4.6bn. Real Madrid are third, Barcelona in fourth and The New York Knicks NBA team are fifth. Manchester United slip four places in the rankings to sixth place with a value of $3.81bn.
Potential presence of broken glass in pizzas. A recall has been issued for several pizzas distributed by Auchan Avallon in France due to the potential...
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The Riviera's ski resorts are celebrating a record winter season.
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The Monegasque government informed its residents today that a fraudulent call campaign is currently targeting the Principality, mainly the most vulner...
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A new study suggests businesses in the Alpes-Maritimes are losing millions of euros per year and hundreds of thousands of hours of workers' time due t...
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Food safety inspectors plan to carry out 100,000 checks on French restaurant and bakeries this year, almost twice as many as last year, to coincide wi...
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