This is the Loire River, the longest river in France.

As the water level drops, the riverbed is exposed in various places, with weeds growing over it.

Hit by a combination of heatwaves and drought, the water volume of the Loire River has been cut in half in just a month.

Originally, this area was deep enough that swimming was prohibited.

Now, however, the water has receded so much that the level has dropped below the knees.

Sightseeing boats that used to operate on the river have also suspended operations.

[Denis Hembert / Tour Boat Operator : To be honest, operating tour boats is really impossible this year. This is truly unprecedented. A drought like this is truly historic.]

It is estimated that 43% of some 3,200 rivers across France, not just the Loire River, have completely dried up or had their water flow cut off due to the drought.

This is twice as much as last year.

Farmers are taking the hardest hit.

The ground in cornfields has cracked open widely, and the corn has shrivelled up and turned yellow.

The grasslands where cattle grazed have completely disappeared, leaving a severe shortage of feed for livestock.

[Philippe / French Livestock Farmer : Almost 70% to 80% of French livestock farms are facing a serious shortage of feed as grass has disappeared from pastures. We are having to use up the hay meant for winter in advance, so our stockpiles are running low.]

Projections show that France's corn harvest this year will drop to a record low, and the production volume and quality of its specialty wine are also expected to decline significantly.

The drought is threatening citizens in urban areas as well.

In areas designated as water shortage crisis zones, residents are not even allowed to water their home gardens and vegetable patches.

In one town with a population of about 6,000, weakened ground caused by the drought cracked some 20 houses, and even the city hall building developed fractures.

[Aurore Caro / Mayor of Meung-sur-Loire : Our residents are very agitated right now. Inquiries are pouring into our city hall asking, "My house is cracking right now, what should we do?"]

Due to a shortage of cooling water, two nuclear power plants in France alone have suspended operations, and other European countries such as Hungary and Romania continue to experience disruptions in power generation due to the drought.

In particular, a total solar eclipse is even forecasted for this week, which is expected to partially reduce solar power generation as well.

(Reported by Kwon Young-in | Produced by Kim Da-yeon | Camera Journalism by Kim Si-nae | Video Editing by Cho Mu-hwan | Production: SBS Digital News)