Record-breaking high temperatures to hit northern China

China’s first widespread heatwave of this year will peak on Monday and Tuesday with scorching temperatures of 40 C or above in multiple northern regions, while a seamless new round of rainstorms will continue to drench large parts of the south throughout the week.

High temperatures ranging from 37 C to 39 C have been forecast in multiple areas, with some of Hebei, Henan and Shaanxi provinces will even surge to 40 C or above. Meanwhile, widespread rainfall in the southern part will continue, with a new round beginning seamlessly on Tuesday, according to weather.com.cn.

Under the influence of a warm ridge moving eastward, high temperatures will rapidly increase and intensify across eastern Northwest China, North China and the Huanghuai region and peak on Monday and Tuesday. Provinces of Shaanxi, Shanxi, Hebei, Shandong, Henan and Hubei are expected to reach t39 C. In some parts of Hebei, Henan and Shaanxi, temperatures may reach or exceed 40 C. A few weather stations may record record-breaking highs that are rare for May, according to weather.com.cn.

In particular, Xi’an in Northwest China’s Shaanxi Province is forecast to reach 39 C starting Monday, while Taiyuan in North China’s Shanxi is expected to hit 38 C or higher, with both cities potentially breaking local May temperature records. Zhengzhou in Central China’s Henan Province is forecast to reach 40 C or above on Monday, the first time this year.

On Monday, widespread rainfall will continue across the southern part of the country and will be seamlessly followed by a new round on Tuesday.

On Sunday, widespread rainfall hit the southern region, with heavy rain reported in parts of Jiangnan and South China. Monitoring data showed that areas in central and western Guangdong, Guangxi, northern part of Fujian, southern part of Zhejiang, central part of Jiangxi, southern part of Hunan, and eastern part of Yunnan experienced heavy to torrential rain, with some areas seeing heavy or even extreme downpours. In Yangjiang, South China’s Guangdong Province, rainfall reached 450.3 millimeters.

On Monday, widespread rainfall will continue in the southern region, with Guangxi and northern part of Guangdong to be on alert for short-term intense downpours. On Tuesday, as cold front moves south and meets warm air, another round of rainfall will begin, which is expected to weaken on Wednesday, weather.com.cn reported.

The National Meteorological Center (NMC) forecast that in the coming days, parts of Guangxi, Guangdong, Fujian, Zhejiang and Jiangxi will experience prolonged rainfall with significant cumulative precipitation. The public is advised to be cautious of disaster risks from overlapping rain events and to avoid traveling to areas prone to geological hazards.

The NMC continued its blue alert for heavy rainfall at 6 am on Monday and forecast that from 8:00 am on Monday to 8:00 am on Tuesday, heavy to torrential rain is expected in parts of the Tianshan region in Xinjiang, southern part of Hunan, northeastern and southern parts of Jiangxi, northern, central and eastern parts of Guangxi, and central to northern parts of Guangdong. Some areas in northern Guangdong are forecast to receive very heavy rainfall of 100 to 120 millimeters.