HÀ NỘI – A heat wave, with a peak temperature of 40 degrees Celsius, has hit the northern and central regions, disrupting the daily life of the locals.

People have to wear thick clothes that offer protection from the sun’s strong rays when walking or driving on the streets to avoid sunburn. Pedestrian tunnels and passages beneath flyovers are found to be ideal sources of shade for outdoor labourers. Office staff have to bring their lunch to work instead of going out.

The heat wave is believed to have produced the highest temperatures since the start of the summer this year, said Lê Thanh Hải, deputy director of the National Centre for Hydro-meteorology Forecasting.

The latest forecast from the centre issued yesterday’s morning said the heat wave, which started on Tuesday, was expected to end today in the north and on Saturday in the central region.

Vũ Anh Tuấn, head of the centre’s Short-term Forecasting Office, said the peak temperature was some 38 degrees Celsius in the northern region yesterday and over 40 degrees Celsius in the central provinces of Nghệ An, Thanh Hóa, Quảng Bình, Quảng Trị and Thừa Thiên-Huế.

However, a cold spell was seen moving south passing over the Tonkin (Bắc Bộ) Gulf and would bring heavy rains to the northern localities at midnight tomorrow, Tuấn said.

People in the northern provinces, especially in the northern mountainous areas, were warned to prepare for a hailstorm and whirlwinds triggered by a combination of the cold spell and the heat wave. They should not take shelter under big trees during heavy rains accompanied by lightning because it was easy to be struck, he said.

According to the National Centre for Hydro-meteorology Forecasting, there will be 2-3 heat waves hitting the north and the central regions this month. – VNS