Beijing, July 13 (BNA): Several Chinese cities broke new records for high temperatures on Tuesday, as scorching temperatures and harsh rains caused havoc, as meteorologists expect extreme weather to continue for several days.
Red alerts, the highest in a three-level warning system, spread across the country on Tuesday and cities took measures to protect citizens from the scorching heat, which broke records for the month of July in parts of eastern Jiangsu province and the neighboring city. From Shanghai, Reuters reported.
Temperatures in Yixing City in Jiangsu rose to 41.3 degrees Celsius (106.3 Fahrenheit) on Tuesday, the China Meteorological Administration said on Wednesday, a new historical peak.
The hashtag #Heatstroke has been trending on social media with 2.45 million views on the Weibo social platform for discussions ranging from people being hospitalized to the harmful effects of long-term heat exposure.
One Weibo user wrote: “The weather this year is really hot and abnormal, the temperature has been over 30 degrees Celsius for two months!”
Experts blame global climate change on unusual weather.
Tuesday’s maximum temperatures rose to 37-39 degrees Celsius in parts of Sichuan, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Jiangxi, Hubei, Anhui, Chongqing and Shanghai provinces.
In particular, the cities of Luzhou and Weibin in Sichuan and Zhaotong in Yunnan, as well as Shaoxing, Ningbo, Jiaxing, Huzhou in Zhejiang and Changzhou and Wuxi in Jiangsu, averaged between 40 and 42 degrees Celsius.
Meanwhile, torrential rains hit parts of Gansu, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Shandong, Hebei, Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia provinces.
Meteorologists expect intense heat and rain to continue over the next several days.
MI