CAIRO, July 27 (Xinhua) -- Intense heatwaves have continued to rage across the Middle East, with temperatures exceeding 50 degrees Celcius in some places, jeopardizing the health of the local population and straining the region's already overwhelmed power systems.
In Iran, a heatwave arriving a few days ago raised temperatures in most cities to near and above 40 degrees Celsius.
During the past 48 hours, the temperature in the Iranian capital Tehran rose to 40 degrees Celsius during the warmest hours.
In southern Iranian provinces, temperatures have approached 50 degrees Celsius since mid-July, with the southwestern Khuzestan Province reaching a staggering 54 degrees Celsius on Saturday.
The heat index, also known as the apparent temperature, is what the temperature feels like to the human body when relative humidity is combined with the air temperature.
Some locations in the Persian Gulf have seen the heat index reach 60 to 65 degrees Celsius.
Owing to the continuation of the unprecedented high temperatures, the Iranian government has announced that all state centers, organizations and banks will shut down on Sunday in a bid to protect the citizens' health and manage domestic energy consumption, the official news agency IRNA reported on Saturday.
Kuwait was hit by a heatwave since last week, with the highest temperature exceeding 50 degrees Celsius last Thursday, according to the Kuwait Meteorological Department. The country's historical record stands at 53.5 degrees Celsius.
Government experts have advised citizens to reduce outdoor activities, particularly during high-temperature periods in the midday and afternoon, avoid direct sunlight, ensure adequate hydration by drinking enough water, and be aware of the dangers of heatstroke and related illnesses.
Meanwhile, the government urged residents to conserve electricity to avert power grid overloads, which could lead to blackouts caused by heightened electricity usage.
Since the arrival of summer, Iraq has been suffering from scorching heat, with several Iraqi provinces, including Dhi Qar, Maysan, Basra, and Muthanna, witnessing a record temperature of over 50 degrees Celsius in recent days.
"It feels like everything is boiling when I go out. I can fry a raw egg outdoors in a few minutes," Hassan, a Baghdad citizen, told Xinhua. "We try to reduce unnecessary outings, but there are frequent power outages at home, which is really unbearable."
Temperatures in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad hovered around 45 degrees Celsius this week.
During the peak period of electricity consumption in summer, Iraq's already worn-out power grid has managed to deal with an expanding power gap, further aggravating the shortage of electricity in the country.
Late June, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani directed official working hours in public offices to be reduced by one hour through the summer in consideration of the high temperatures experienced throughout the country.
On July 21, Earth experienced its warmest day in recent history, with the daily global average temperature reaching a new record high, according to the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service on Tuesday.
The service reported in early July that last month was the hottest June on record.
Scientists said that the heatwaves suggest how human-caused climate change has made life-threatening temperatures more common.
As climate change is expected to exacerbate in the coming decades, countries in the Middle East, roasted by extreme and sometimes deadly heat every summer, are among the most severely impacted.
Higher temperatures have not only worsened the water scarcity and desertification already facing the Middle East but also driven up energy demand, damaged crop yields, endangered people's health, and impacted its education sector, as schools resort to shortening school hours and extending holidays to cope with the heat, imposing a significant long-term impediment on the ambitions of the region. ■
