France is suffering from a third wave of extreme heat since May. The government has activated its emergency action plan for the first time due to high temperatures, reports International French Radio. Since Friday, July 10, it has been implemented in departments where the highest, 'red', level of weather danger has been declared. The current heat wave is expected to last at least until the middle of next week. On Saturday, more than 20 departments in France, including the densely populated capital region, were declared to be at 'red' level of weather danger due to the heat. This affects about a quarter of the territory of mainland France and approximately a third of its population. The ORSEC plan provides for the opening of 'specialized centers, protection centers, and cooling points' for 'vulnerable categories of the population' — primarily the elderly, as well as the 'homeless', the government indicated. 'Such centers have been opened before — or at least were available during the day (particularly in town hall buildings), so that people could come and cool off,' noted government representative Mod Bréjon. She also reported that out of 30,000 air conditioners for hospitals announced by the Prime Minister, six thousand 'have already been delivered and installed.' 'The rest are arriving gradually' — depending on requests, she assured. A number of associations and political opponents of the current government claim that the authorities are responding too late. 'The government is reacting to the situation rather than acting proactively — just like all governments since the heat wave of 2003,' said Yann Lanié, head of the charity association Les Petits Frères des Pauvres, which fights against the isolation of the elderly.