Heatwave hits north but rains cool south
By By Liang Chao (China Daily)
Updated: 2005-06-21 02:15

While southern China was soaked by excessive rainfall, the north was hit by the first round of sweltering summer heat.

A street along the Minjiang River in Fuzhou, capital of Fujian Province, is flooded after torrential rains caused the worst floods in two decades. [newsphoto]

Scorching weather is predicted for the next two days across the mid-south parts of North China, areas between the Yellow and Huaihe rivers, regions between the Yangtze and Huaihe rivers, the Hanshui River basin, most of Northwest China's Shaanxi, Ningxia, Gansu and Xinjiang.

Temperatures may be hot today, the year's longest day, and then slightly drop to between 35 C and 37 C.

Dazzling sunshine is expected to lead to temperatures of 38 C to 39 C in Beijing and Shijiazhuang in Hebei Province and 40 C to 42 C in parts of Central China's Henan Province and Northwest China's Xinjiang, according to a warning issued yesterday by the State Meteorological Observatory.

This week, thunder, hailstorms and showers are likely to strike more areas along with the heatwave. Showers may interrupt soaring temperatures for a while, the observatory warned.

In contrast, the south will be pounded again by massive downpours this week with rainfall averaging between 60 and 120 millimetres and reaching a possible maximum of 150 to 200 millimetres, said Xiao Ziniu, deputy director of the China Meteorological Centre.

Children keep cool in a Zhengzhou park. Temperatures in the city hit a record 38.3 Celsius degree and may climb to 40 Celsius degree Tuesday. [newsphoto]

"Total rainfall throughout South China this week will be up 40 per cent on a normal year," he said.

Over the weekend, torrential rain caused serious flooding on some local rivers in Jiangxi and Fujian provinces and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, cut off sections of railways and suspended tourism as water levels exceeded their warning marks, according to local reports reaching Beijing yesterday.

In the north by yesterday, high temperature regions were reported to range from Xinjiang, Shanxi, Hebei, Shandong and Henan to parts of Anhui, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Hunan, Hubei, Guizhou and Chongqing.

In Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, the price of fresh flowers soared by 30 per cent following the hot weather.

In Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei Province, the mercury stood at an average of 37 C for seven consecutive days by yesterday, with many locals flocking to swimming pools to cool themselves down.

In Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan Province, a record 38.3 C was recorded yesterday. Today, the temperature is likely to soar to 40 C, local weathermen said.

Chinese tourists walk past a huge thermometer on the Flaming Mountain of Turpan, northwest Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region June 20, 2005. The 12-metres (39.4 feet) high thermometer shows the temperature tops 55 degrees Celsius (131 F). The Flaming Mountain, which is made famous by the classical Chinese mythological novel 'Journey To The West', is said to be the hottest place in China during summer. [newsphoto]

They reminded people, particularly construction workers, to take precautionary measures to prevent sunstroke and burns.

In Bengbu, a city along the Huaihe River in East China's Anhui Province, the temperature has been above 35 C for four days. Many locals have been crowding inside large shopping malls equipped with powerful air conditioner systems to avoid the summer heat.

(China Daily 06/21/2005 page2)

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