"We must be careful": in Rennes, residents of a nursing home face an unusual heatwave

Brittany is not immune to the intense heat. Two departments will be placed on orange heatwave alert this afternoon : Morbihan and Ille-et-Vilaine. Already on Thursday, temperatures reached 33 degrees Celsius in Rennes. This Friday, the thermometer could reach 35 degrees Celsius. A heatwave that is expected to peak on Saturday.

Three days of over 30 degrees Celsius is unusual in Brittany, where residents are adapting as best they can, especially the most vulnerable.

In this Rennes nursing home, a glass of mint water in hand, Jean, 92, enjoys the air conditioning installed in the dining room, because in his room, the thermometer reads 26 degrees. “It's especially hot. Even for me, who can tolerate it well. And it's even more tiring,” he emphasizes.

To stay in shape despite the heat, his wife Marie-Thérèse keeps an eye on things.

“My husband is never thirsty, so I force him to drink. I offer him the glass and say 'yours' because afterwards, you get dehydrated, your head hurts, you hurt all over, you could fall. You have to be careful as you get older,” she emphasizes.

Nicolas Carrière, the nursing home manager, has recruited an additional caregiver for this period of intense heat because, "residents who have reached a certain age no longer feel thirsty. Syrups work well, and so do sorbets," he says.

And for elderly people living alone at home, Rennes city hall has mobilized a team of 40 municipal agents responsible for calling them every day to check on them.