Mercury hits 39 degrees in eastern Japan on Monday | NHK WORLD-JAPAN News

Scorching weather continued across Japan on Monday. The mercury rose to 39 degrees Celsius in some regions in Tochigi and Yamanashi prefectures in eastern Japan.

Japanese weather officials say a high-pressure system near Japan’s main island of Honshu is bringing sunny weather. They say the rainy season in northern Kyushu has ended.

Intense sunshine started driving up temperatures across the country from the morning.

By 2 p.m., the mercury rose to 39 degrees in Sano City, Tochigi Prefecture, and in Katsunuma District, Koshu City, Yamanashi Prefecture.

It was 38.8 degrees in Ushiku District in Ichihara City, Chiba Prefecture; 38.6 degrees in Daigo Town, Ibaraki Prefecture; and 38.4 degrees in Maebashi City, Gunma Prefecture and Funagira District in Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture.

Elsewhere, it was 37.7 degrees in Kyoto City; 37.2 degrees in Yukuhashi City, Fukuoka Prefecture; 37.1 degrees in Nagoya City; 36.6 degrees in central Tokyo; 36.1 degrees in Sendai City; and 35.1 degrees in Obihiro City, Hokkaido.

Heatstroke alerts have been issued for 39 out of 47 prefectures.

The number of people taken to hospital for heatstroke tends to rise when summer heat replaces the rainy season.

People are advised to avoid going out as much as possible, stay in a cool indoor space using air conditioners and take liquids and sodium.

People are also advised to keep an eye on senior residents and infants, as they are more likely to suffer from heatstroke.