BEIJING: Dozens of cities in China are baking under the scorching sun as heat waves have melted roofs of buildings and razed roads and hot weather has prompted people to cool off in underground shelters.
As of 11am (0300 GMT) on Tuesday, 68 cities – including Shanghai and pass Nanjing – had issued a red alert, the highest in a three-level heatwave warning system, predicting temperatures to exceed 40 °C (104 °F) in the next 24 hours.
Shanghai, which is still fighting sporadic COVID-19 outbreaks, warned its 25 million residents this week to be prepared for hot weather. Since record-keeping began in 1873, Shanghai had only had 15 days with temperatures above 40 °C.
A widely shared photo on social media shows a COVID tester in a full-body hazmat suit hugging a one-metre-long block of snow by the side of a road. In a sprawling Shanghai Wildlife Park, its employees had to wade through eight tons of snow a day to keep their animals cool.
“This year, summer has come a little earlier than before,” said zhu derenA Shanghai resident, as his five-year-old son plays in a water fountain.
“Although it’s July now, I think (hot weather) has already hit a high point. Basically, you have to turn on the AC when you come home and apply some sunscreen when you go out.”
three furnaces
China is facing the heat of contrasts this year, with heatwaves and heavy rains wreaking havoc across the country. Officials have warned of possible weather disasters from mid-July, citing climate change, which is traditionally the hottest and hottest time of the year.
State television showed that in a town in southern Jiangxi province, a portion of a road had risen at least 15 cm due to the heat.
Nanjing, one of China’s three “furnaces” notorious for its scorching summers, has opened its underground air-raid shelters, equipped with wartime bunkers, to residents from Sunday. Wi-Fi, books, water dispensers and even microwave ovens. The city issued a red alert on Tuesday.
In chongqing, the second “kiln”, the roof of one of its museums literally melted, with the tiles of a traditional Chinese roof causing the heat to dissolve the underlying tar. The city issued a red alert on Monday.
Chongqing has also deployed sanitation water-spraying trucks to keep its streets cool.
This week, high temperatures, humidity and ultra-violet radiation are also projected to cover the central city of Wuhan, the third furnace.
As of 11am (0300 GMT) on Tuesday, 68 cities – including Shanghai and pass Nanjing – had issued a red alert, the highest in a three-level heatwave warning system, predicting temperatures to exceed 40 °C (104 °F) in the next 24 hours.
Shanghai, which is still fighting sporadic COVID-19 outbreaks, warned its 25 million residents this week to be prepared for hot weather. Since record-keeping began in 1873, Shanghai had only had 15 days with temperatures above 40 °C.
A widely shared photo on social media shows a COVID tester in a full-body hazmat suit hugging a one-metre-long block of snow by the side of a road. In a sprawling Shanghai Wildlife Park, its employees had to wade through eight tons of snow a day to keep their animals cool.
“This year, summer has come a little earlier than before,” said zhu derenA Shanghai resident, as his five-year-old son plays in a water fountain.
“Although it’s July now, I think (hot weather) has already hit a high point. Basically, you have to turn on the AC when you come home and apply some sunscreen when you go out.”
three furnaces
China is facing the heat of contrasts this year, with heatwaves and heavy rains wreaking havoc across the country. Officials have warned of possible weather disasters from mid-July, citing climate change, which is traditionally the hottest and hottest time of the year.
State television showed that in a town in southern Jiangxi province, a portion of a road had risen at least 15 cm due to the heat.
Nanjing, one of China’s three “furnaces” notorious for its scorching summers, has opened its underground air-raid shelters, equipped with wartime bunkers, to residents from Sunday. Wi-Fi, books, water dispensers and even microwave ovens. The city issued a red alert on Tuesday.
In chongqing, the second “kiln”, the roof of one of its museums literally melted, with the tiles of a traditional Chinese roof causing the heat to dissolve the underlying tar. The city issued a red alert on Monday.
Chongqing has also deployed sanitation water-spraying trucks to keep its streets cool.
This week, high temperatures, humidity and ultra-violet radiation are also projected to cover the central city of Wuhan, the third furnace.