People cover themselves during the hot weather in Hà Nội. — VNA/VNS Photo Hoàng Hiếu

HÀ NỘI — Hà Nội and other northern provinces have been witnessing extremely hot weather, with the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting (NCHMF) predicting the current intense heat wave would last for the next 2-3 days.

For the first time this summer, the Láng meteorological station in Hà Nội recorded a temperature of 40 degrees Celsius on Tuesday.

According to the NCHMF, since May 30, 34 provinces in the North and Central regions recorded temperatures ranging from 37 to 40 degrees Celsius.

The temperature in Hoà Bình Province measured at three stations of Chi Nê, Lạc Sơn and Hoa Bình City reached 40 degrees.

Two provinces bordering Hà Nội, Hà Nam and Hưng Yên, also saw temperatures rise to 40 degrees.

Many districts in the central provinces of Thanh Hoá, Nghệ An and Quảng Ngãi saw even higher figures.

The outdoor temperature is usually 3-5 degrees higher, depending on the terrain.

Nguyễn Văn Hưởng, NCHMF's head of climate forecasting, said that due to the impact of the low pressure area in the west and strong winds, the north and central regions were seeing high temperatures for 10-19 hours a day, and humidity was only 40-60 per cent.

It was forecast that in the next 2-3 days, northern mountainous provinces of Sơn La and Hoà Bình, the midlands and Hồng (Red) Delta regions and the provinces from Thanh Hoá to Phú Yên would continue experiencing hot weather with a temperature of 37-40 degrees Celsius, Hưởng said.

The ultraviolet (UV) index in cities was also very high, the NCHMF said.

The maximum UV index usually occurs from 10am to 1pm.

A UV index of 2.5-5.4 is moderate, 5.5-7.4 is high risk, 7.5 -10.4 is very high, and more than 10.5 or higher is considered dangerous.

From June 2 to 4, the UV index in Hà Nội is forecast to reach 9. 

The UV index in the localities of Hải Phòng City, Hạ Long City of Quảng Ninh Province, Huế City of Thừa Thiên-Huế, Đà Nẵng City, Hội An City of Quảng Nam Province,  Nha Trang City of Khánh Hoà Province, HCM City, Cần Thơ City, and Cà Mau City will range from 8 to 10 over the next three days.

Health experts recommend people wear protective clothing, including long-sleeved shirts, collared jackets, long trousers, and wide hats to cover their face, neck and ears.

People should wear sunglasses to protect their eyes, and choose lenses with UV protection.

People should eat plenty of fresh fruit rich in vitamin C and use sunscreen regularly, even when it is cloudy.

If exposed to high temperatures for a long time, people could become dehydrated, exhausted, and suffer heat stroke.

The NCHMF forecast that in June in the north and central provinces, there would be about 3-4 extreme heat waves.

The first wave is occuring and may last until June 3 in the north and until June 5 in the central region, according to the NCHMF.

In mid- to late-June, the north was also likely to see 2-3 heat waves with a duration of about 3-5 days each, with an average temperature of 35-38 degrees Celsius, while the western mountains of the central region in Sơn La and Hoà Bình provinces would have severe heat waves with the temperatures reaching 38-40 degrees, said Trần Quang Năng, an expert from NCHMF.

“Due to the influence of the hot weather combined with the low humidity in the air and the strong southwest wind, there was a high risk of fire in residential areas due to the increasing electricity consumption, and the high risk of forest fires in the central provinces,” said Hưởng. — VNS