A red alert for high heat is in effect in China on Friday over a large northern part of the country with temperatures around 40°C, especially in Beijing which broke a hot record the day before.
High temperatures in China are not unusual in summer, especially in the arid west and south of the country.
The inhabitants of the capital Beijing are also accustomed to the heat at this time of year.
But the country has been facing extreme weather conditions and locally unusual temperatures in recent months, exacerbated by climate change according to scientists.
As of Friday morning, 185 red alerts were issued over a large northern and eastern quarter of China, which includes Beijing, the eastern metropolis of Tianjin, as well as the bordering provinces of Hebei and Shandong.
Red alert is the highest level of meteorology in China.
This is the first time since 2014 that it comes into force in Beijing, with temperatures which could again reach 40°C, according to the weather services.
The Chinese capital recorded Thursday 41.1 ° C, its hottest day in June since the beginning of meteorological records in 1961.
“This weather is not human and it’s only June!”, wrote a user on the Weibo social network in tune with other comments.
In the streets of Beijing, residents moved on Friday with their faces fully covered with a mask to protect themselves from the sun, and wore a cap with a large visor.
Along the city’s canals, some sought to escape the heat by splashing around in the water.
In the coastal province of Shandong which borders the Yellow Sea, the temperature even reached locally Thursday 43°C, according to the meteorological services.
According to local media, 17 weather stations nationwide broke temperature records.
The severe heat is expected to persist in northern and eastern China for at least eight days, meteorological services warned on Friday.
06/23/2023 11:49:32 – Beijing (AFP) – © 2023 AFP