Authorities have also issued warnings for areas ranging from central Shaanxi province to eastern coastal Jiangsu province. Zhejiang, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces could also see temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius on Wednesday, according to the Central Meteorological Observatory. Temperatures have been soaring for several days, with Shanghai issuing a red alert on Sunday for the first time this year as the economic hub plunged to 40 degrees Celsius, according to state-run tabloid The Global Times. Shanghai has experienced only 15 days with temperatures above 40 degrees since the city began keeping records in 1873, the Shanghai Meteorological Administration said on Sunday. Vendors in the city reported increased sales of ice cream, melons and frozen crawfish in liquor — a popular dish in the summer. In a huge Shanghai wildlife park, eight metric tons of ice are used every day to keep lions, pandas and other animals cool. Other parts of the country, such as parts of the southwestern Sichuan basin, are also experiencing high temperatures this year, according to The Global Times. In the city of Chongqing — which has issued a red alert — the roof of a museum melted, with traditional Chinese tiles cracking as the heat dissolved the underlying tar. The city has deployed trucks to spray water in an effort to cool its streets. Otherwise, the residents try to cool off in various ways. On Sunday, huge crowds in the city of Qingdao, in the eastern province of Shandong, flocked to the beach for a dip in the sea. Children in Nanning, Guangxi region, played barefoot in public fountains. In Nanjing, Jiangsu province, residents headed to an air raid shelter to escape the heat, reading newspapers and watching TV to pass the time in the wartime shelters equipped with Wi-Fi. In its statement, the Central Meteorological Observatory asked local officials to implement measures to prevent heatstroke and fires. Residents should avoid outdoor activities and take protective measures — especially the young, the elderly and those with health problems, he added. China’s summer of contrasts this year has brought havoc from both heat waves and heavy rainfall. Climate change authorities have been warning of disaster since mid-July, usually the hottest and wettest time of the year. Last month, parts of southern China were hit by the heaviest rainfall in 60 years, with nearly half a million people affected by floods and landslides in the southern province of Guangdong. More than 177,000 people were forced to relocate, with many households seeing their homes and crops destroyed. China’s annual flood season traditionally begins in June and is usually more severe in densely populated rural areas along the Yangtze River and its tributaries — but it has become more intense and dangerous in recent years, and experts have warned that climate change could make matters worse. Additional reporting by Reuters.
