A rolling heatwave continues to bake large parts of the Chinese mainland, prompting meteorological services to renew and upgrade high-temperature alerts across several provinces. On Thursday at 06:00, the National Meteorological Center reissued an orange alert as daytime highs are forecast to top 35°C in multiple regions.
In northwestern China's Shaanxi Province, eight weather stations hit all-time temperature records on Tuesday, triggering red alerts for extreme heat. Cities from Xi’an to Ankang recorded scorching 40°C-plus days, pushing local vendors and delivery riders to seek shade and quick relief.
Shanxi Province’s Meteorological Center raised its heat alert to the highest red level on Tuesday. In Yuncheng City, when mercury climbed past 40°C, officials rolled out street-spraying operations, opened rest stations with free water and air conditioning, and offered drive-through cooling.
Further west on the Chinese mainland, Turpan in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region—nicknamed 'fire stove'—entered an orange alert from Wednesday through Sunday, with peaks above 45°C. Authorities there stepped up police patrols and set up pop-up cooling stations to safeguard traffic and residents.
Central regions like Zhengzhou in Henan Province also saw orange alerts on Wednesday. To protect outdoor workers, local departments enforced staggered shifts and heat-adaptive schedules, reducing exposure during peak afternoon temperatures.
As of Wednesday noon, the National Early Warning Center tallied 20,248 high-temperature alerts nationwide—a 40% jump from this time last year and a 72% rise over the seven-year average. Forecasters say a cold front and scattered rain may ease the heat in eastern areas by Friday, though central provinces like Henan and Hubei may hold onto summery highs a little longer.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
