Following an intense summer heat wave, Chinese state media reported on Tuesday (September 7) that the country logged in hottest August since record-keeping began. This unusual rise in temperature caused rivers to dry up. The heat scorched crops and triggered isolated blackouts.

The heat wave in southern China last month has suspected by experts to have been one of the worst heat waves in global history. Parts of Sichuan province and city of Chongqing recorded temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius for a string of days.
The average temperature nationwide was 22.4C in August, exceeding the norm by 1.2C, state broadcaster CCTV reported, citing the country’s weather service.

Some 267 weather stations across the country matched or broke temperature records last month, the report said.
The month was also China’s third-driest August on record. The recorded average rainfall was 23.1 per cent lower than usual.

“The average number of high-temperature days was abnormally high, and regional high-temperature processes are continuing to impact our country,” CCTV reported the weather service as saying.

Scientists say extreme weather like heat waves, droughts and flash floods is becoming more frequent and intense due to human-induced climate change.

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