00:00France has temporarily shut down three nuclear reactors as an intense heat wave continues to sweep across the country.
00:08Another eight reactors are operating at reduced capacity to comply with environmental limits on cooling water discharges.
00:16The shutdowns marked a second time in recent weeks that state-owned utility EDF has been forced to curb nuclear
00:23operations due to extreme heat.
00:25The measures are designed to prevent overheated cooling water from being released into rivers where rising temperatures could harm aquatic
00:34ecosystems.
00:35France's nuclear power plants rely on river water to cool their reactors before returning the water to the environment.
00:43More than a third of the country was placed under its highest heat alert on Sunday, with over 25 million
00:49people facing temperatures of up to 41 degrees Celsius.
00:53Meanwhile, two firefighting aircraft have been deployed to combat a major wildfire that has spread over 800 hectares in the
01:02south of Paris.
