Japan records its highest temperature ever

Tokyo, Jul 23 : Japanese media say a city north of Tokyo has reached the highest temperature ever recorded in the country.

The temperature hit 41.1 degrees Celsius (106 degrees Fahrenheit) in Kumagaya on Monday afternoon.

Japan and South Korea are in the middle of an extended heat wave. Japan’s Kyodo News agency has tallied more than 40 deaths in Japan.

Kumagaya is about 65 kilometers (40 miles) northwest of Tokyo.

Searing hot temperatures are forecast for wide swaths of Japan and South Korea in a long-running heat wave that’s killed at least two dozen people.

The mercury is expected to reach 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit) on Monday in the city of Nagoya in central Japan and reach 37 (99 F) in Tokyo.

South Korea’s Yonhap news agency says the country’s highest-ever morning low was recorded in the city of Gangneung, where the temperature was 31 (88 F) at 6:45 a.m. The morning low in Seoul was 29 (84 F).

Hundreds of people have been rushed to Japanese hospitals with heat stroke symptoms in the more than week-long heat wave. Deaths have been reported almost every day.

Authorities in Japan warned people to stay inside and use air conditioning.