Heat Wave Set to Continue Until Mid-week

Beijing summers are known for being hot and sticky, but it won’t be news to anyone that the city is in the grip of a heat wave that’s pushed temperatures to levels higher than usual. According to China Daily, the Beijing Meteorological Bureau “released the first high temperature warning of this summer on Saturday,” while the Global Times reported this morning that the National Meteorological Center (NMC) issued a yellow-code heat alert on Sunday. The Global Times article states: “China has a four-color heat warning system, with red being the most serious, preceded by orange, yellow and blue.”

The heatwave has affected much of the country, with average temperatures in Beijing Municipality, and Hebei, Shanxi, Shandong and Anhui provinces hitting 37-39 degrees over the weekend. The Beijing Meteorological Bureau reported the highest local temperature on Sunday was 39.5 degrees, recorded in Haidian.

The Beijing Meteorological Bureau predicts a top of 37 today (Monday) and 36 tomorrow, before temperatures drop to the low 30s later in the week.

According to the BBC weather site the average daily maximum temperature for July in Beijing is 31 degrees.