Heat wave, flooding leave multiple people dead in China

Beijing, July 14 (BNA): Floods and extremely high temperatures have caused multiple deaths in eastern China with summer temperatures dropping earlier than usual.

Record high temperatures were reported in Zhejiang Province, east of the global business hub in Shanghai, exceeding 42 degrees Celsius (107 degrees Fahrenheit) on Wednesday, the Associated Press reported.

Neighboring coastal provinces Jiangsu and Fujian also suffered from high temperatures, while inland Henan, Sichuan and Heilongjiang saw many patients hospitalized for heat stroke, with an undisclosed number of deaths.

Floods also swept through most of the country, with three people killed and five missing in Pingwu County, Sichuan Province as of Wednesday noon. One death was reported and eight were missing in Heilongjiang, in the northeast.

Experts say such extreme weather events are becoming more likely due to climate change. Warmer air can store more water, causing a larger cloud to explode when released.

Hundreds of thousands of people in south-central China have already been displaced by the floods. The flood adds to economic woes caused in part by strict “COVID-free” measures restricting travel and disrupting supply chains.

MI