Things started hotting up yesterday as temperatures across the country spiked as high as 38 C.

By yesterday afternoon, weathermen in Shijiazhuang, capital of North China's Hebei Province, scooped the prize for the country's highest temperature, recording 38 C (100.4 Fahrenheit).

The hot weather will continue today and probably tomorrow with the mercury likely to stand above 35 C, State meteorologists said, warning people to be aware of the danger of heatstroke.

"The hot weather is a result of high pressure warm air hovering over northern China and neighbouring areas," said Sun Jun, a meteorologist with the State Weather Observatory.

"It is normal for North China to have hot days in summer with temperatures above 35 C," he said, adding that in the north, the year's hot days usually begin at the end of May.

In the next three days, convective weather changes including lightening, thunder and hailstorms are likely to interrupt the hot weather for a while.

Torrential rains and rainstorms will sweep over areas south of the Yangtze River, the southern parts of Southwest China's Yunnan Province and parts of South China from today, weather forecasters have predicted.

Meteorologists in the Chinese capital urged local authorities to be well prepared for mud-rock flows or landslides which could be triggered by the massive downpours.

(China Daily June 16, 2005)