At least two people have died from heatstroke in a Chinese city, and more residents have fallen ill as temperatures on the east coast hovered around 40 degrees Celsius for eight days.
Over the next three days, most areas south of the Yangtze River, which empties into the sea at Shanghai, are expected to experience temperatures ranging between 37C-39C, with temperatures in parts of Anhui, Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces exceeding 40 degrees Celsius, forecasters said on Thursday (Aug 8).
After experiencing the hottest July on record, China has been hit by extreme heat, especially in the east and south of the country. Zhejiang provincial capital Hangzhou recorded its highest temperature on record at 41.9C on August 3.
Emergency services in Shenzhen, a city of 18 million people in Guangdong province, said they had made 88 emergency calls to homes for heat-related illnesses between Aug. 1 and 6.
Two men, one in his 50s and another in his 60s, later died, according to a statement released Wednesday (Aug. 7) evening.
China does not provide death tolls from heatwaves, although domestic media occasionally report fatalities, citing local authorities.
In 2022, China was hit by its worst heat wave since 1961, with many parts of the country experiencing 79 days of hot weather from June 13 to August 30. China did not release an official death toll. (ft/rs)
