On July 14th, in Xinxiang, Henan, five domesticated geese died in a pond due to the hot weather. Mr. Zhang, the estate owner, expressed that he has been raising geese for over ten years and this is the first time such an incident has occurred. The news quickly became a hot topic on July 16th. In recent times, extreme high temperatures have been recorded in many parts of China.
A viral video online shows a man commenting on the high temperatures in Henan, where even geese are dying in the water. He uses a wooden pole to retrieve the dead geese from the water, stating, “The water temperature is around fifty to sixty degrees Celsius.”
Mr. Zhang spoke to the “Today Evening News” on July 15th, stating that due to the ongoing hot weather, he unexpectedly discovered five of his geese dead in the pond due to the heat. The temperature and humidity gauges on his farm also bent due to the heat. Despite raising geese for over a decade, this is the first time he has experienced such extreme high temperatures. Geese are known to tolerate both heat and cold, but the fact that they died in the water due to heat was unprecedented for him. Currently, he is relying on well water sprays to cool the remaining geese daily.
On the same day, Zhengzhou and Xinxiang in Henan issued a red warning for high temperatures, with temperatures reaching above 40 degrees Celsius.
In addition, another netizen in a video mentioned that not only geese but also fish and chickens raised in ponds are suffering from the heat, causing significant losses for breeders. Experts predict that the high temperatures in China will result in more than a 20% loss in the breeding industry.
However, some internet users joked that the only advantage of the high temperatures in Henan is that it might kill off mosquitoes.
Recently, widespread high temperatures have been seen across various regions in China, intensifying day by day. According to China Weather Net on July 15th, several places broke their local record for highest temperatures that day, with surface temperatures reaching unprecedented levels for the period.
Data monitoring showed that as of 2 p.m. on the 15th, Turpan Dongkan in Xinjiang recorded the highest temperature nationwide at 42.6 degrees Celsius. Zhuozhi in Shaanxi reached 41.4 degrees Celsius, breaking the highest July temperature record again after the 14th. Meixian in Shaanxi also hit 41.4 degrees Celsius, breaking the mid-July highest temperature record there.
Moreover, surface temperatures reached historically high levels as well. From 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. on the 15th, Wugong in Shaanxi recorded a record high surface temperature of 72.9 degrees Celsius, breaking its mid-July highest surface temperature record. Lin Tong at 72.1 degrees Celsius tied its all-time highest surface temperature record in local meteorological history.
China Weather Net predicts that the intense heat will continue on the 16th, with some regions in Qinghai, Sichuan, Shaanxi, Chongqing, Hubei, Hunan, Henan, Shanxi, and other provinces and cities experiencing rare extreme heat for the period.
Weather Net stated that starting from the 17th, the high temperatures in the eastern Huang-Huai region towards the Jiang-Huai region will ease due to the influence of cold air and rainfall. However, as the cold air path shifts to the east, the cooling effect on Henan and Hubei will be limited, and the high temperatures are expected to persist.