Women hold umbrellas to shield them from the sultry heat as a barometer stands at 38 C on a street in Taizhou, east China's Zhejiang Province July 18.

Local temperatures will be above 37 C in the coming days, prompting the local observatory to issue a yellow warning, a sign of scorching heat, in areas including Hangzhou, Ningbo, Taizhou and Jinhua as well as Lishui.

(Newsphoto July 19, 2007)