China has been experiencing heavy and widespread rainfall since the start of the rainy season, which runs from May to September. It has resulted in at least 20 floods in major rivers across the country, with 31 rivers surpassing their flood warning levels.
Dianjiang county, in Chongqing, received 269.2mm in one day last week, a single-day record there. It led to six deaths, more than 10,000 evacuations, and 40,000 people being affected, as well as severe disruptions to rail services and transport caused by flooding.
At the beginning of this week, China’s national meteorological centre reissued a yellow alert for rainstorms and further warnings were issued from Beijing’s ministry of water resources as water levels at Lake Tai rose to 3.9 metres last weekend, 0.1 metres above the warning level.
The Three Gorges dam is on high alert for more flooding. The speed of water flow into the dam has increased to 44,000 cubic metres per second, resulting in the water level rising to 15 metres above its usual level, at 161.1 metres.
Meanwhile, the heatwave across south-eastern Europe has continued this week, with temperatures exceeding 40C at times. In Greece, certain forms of outdoor work have been banned during the hottest times of the day and air-conditioned spaces have been provided to the public.
Twelve Italian cities have been put under a severe heat warning by authorities, with the public being urged to stay indoors. North Macedonia and Bulgaria have received several aircraft to help fight severe wildfires across each country. About 200 wildfires have been reported in North Macedonia where temperatures of 42C have been recorded since the beginning of July. One fire, in which a firefighter was injured, stretched nearly 18 miles (30km) wide.
Athens is expected to reach up to 43C through much of this week, with other countries, such as Serbia and Croatia, expecting temperatures to hover around 40C. The Rusanda salt lake in Serbia has dried up for the first time on record, while power consumption in the country is also at a record high due to widespread use of air conditioning.
Source: theguardian.com
