Electric fans fly off shelves in 'hell on earth' of Paris heatwave

With temperatures soaring in the French capital, Parisians are flocking to stores to purchase electric fans and air conditioners to combat a heatwave that could set new record highs for the month of June in the country.

Crowds of customers carried boxes of electric fans at a Paris electronics store on Tuesday (June 23), as temperatures were expected to reach 38 degrees Celsius (100.4 degrees Fahrenheit) in the city, according to weather service Meteo France.

"I came quick, I haven't even had my coffee this morning, I run here to buy an electric fan," said filmmaker Victoria Yakubov, who managed to snag a box of the appliance abandoned in one of the aisles.

"Everything was gone in less than 30 minutes."

Ambroise Pourtier, the head of sales in the Darty electronics store, said demand for electric fans and air conditioners have skyrocketed in the last week, since the onset of the heatwave.

Temperatures in Paris are expected to stay in the high 30s until Friday (June 26), Meteo France forecast.

"No, I'm not sleeping well, but I don't think I'm the only one... It's just horrible," Parisian Severine Le Beuzit said.     "Paris, when temperatures go higher than 25 (degrees Celsius), is just hell on earth."

Camera: Nicolas Coupe, Production: Michaela Cabrera, Ardee Napolitano/Reuters