Recently, many provinces and cities in China have been experiencing prolonged high temperatures, with some areas reaching over forty degrees Celsius. One such place is Yantai City in Shandong Province, where students living in a university dormitory suffered from heatstroke due to the lack of air conditioning.
In a recent disclosure by mainland netizens on social media platforms, it was revealed that the student dormitories at the East China campus of Yantai Nanshan College did not have air conditioning, leading to students fainting from the heat and being taken away by ambulances.
On July 5th, a student at Yantai Nanshan College’s East China campus told Jímù News that the high temperatures had persisted for several days, and the dormitory buildings lacked air conditioning, with only a small hanging fan that provided limited airflow, blowing hot air due to the high temperatures. The students had to rely on showers to cool down.
He further explained, “After taking a shower, within 20 minutes, the sweat would cover my whole body, and I only fell asleep after 2 am last night, waking up feeling hot at 6 am.” He also mentioned that many students would seek refuge in the campus supermarket to cool off, but since the dormitories closed at night, they could only stay in the supermarket until around 9 pm.
Another student mentioned that their dormitory currently had no additional cooling measures, forcing them to endure the heat throughout the night. Both students also revealed that there were cases of students fainting from the heat on campus and being taken away in ambulances.
In response, a staff member from the Yantai Nanshan College’s East China campus stated that the students who suffered from heatstroke were not seriously affected.
He explained, “Some of the school buildings are quite old, and the electrical circuits may not be able to support the installation of air conditioning in the dormitories at the moment.”
This situation sparked discussions among netizens:
“When I was in college, there was no heating, no fans, let alone air conditioning. Sitting in the classroom studying, I would break out in heat rashes, fortunately, no one fainted from the heat.”
“When I was in college, we experienced 42 degrees without air conditioning. Even the only small ceiling fan in the dormitory was broken, and the power would be cut off at 11 pm.”
“If you have a ceiling fan, I went to college in Wuhan after 2005, lived in dorms built in the 1960s, and there wasn’t even a fan.”
“Installing air conditioning would solve the issue. Students can pay for the cooling fees, we’ll contribute! Must we wait until something serious happens to address it?”
“I am from the 70s and I feel summers are hotter now than when I was young. With modern cars, air conditioning, marble, and concrete structures, cities are becoming hotter.”
“I attended elementary, middle, and high school, none of which had air conditioning. High school was at the foot of a mountain surrounded by trees, so it was cooler in the summer. University was in the city and unbearably hot.”
“The current environmental climate is harsh, unlike back when we (born in the 80s) were growing up. In the past, many cement houses had poor ventilation. Old houses were made of stone and bamboo fences, without air conditioning, but still able to disperse heat. Nowadays, factories and cars emit heat everywhere. The environment is completely different and incomparable.”
Some netizens raised questions:
“First, does the principal’s office have air conditioning?”
“First, do the dormitories for international students have air conditioning?”
“If your skin is an issue, it’s no wonder there’s no air conditioning.”
“Local students don’t ask for the same treatment as international students, at least they should get accommodation equal to that of African American students.”
Not only Yantai but also recently, Northeast China has been experiencing prolonged high temperatures. Multiple university students from various schools took to social media platforms to report that their dormitories had no air conditioning or fans, making it unbearable to sleep at night. Some resorted to resting in the corridors and downstairs on mats, with cases of students suffering heatstroke during final exams.
A student studying in Shenyang told Jiupai News that there are hardly any areas in the school with air conditioning. With fans being ineffective in the high temperatures, just sitting down would cause profuse sweating. Unable to sleep at night due to the heat, they couldn’t even take showers as the school’s bathrooms were not open 24/7.
A parent from Hunan mentioned, “My son is at Jilin University, and he said the power is cut off uniformly every night at 11:30.” A netizen from Shandong also shared, “My younger brother is studying in Jilin, he can’t sleep at night due to the heat. Some students have already fainted.”
According to the China Meteorological Administration, the high-temperature weather in China continues to worsen. On the 4th, the area where temperatures exceeded 35°C in China covered over 2 million square kilometers. In some regions like Guanzhong in Shaanxi, southern Shanxi, and central Henan, the highest temperatures surpassed 39°C, with Weinan in Shaanxi recording a local peak of 40.8°C.
On the 5th, the China Meteorological Administration continued to issue yellow warnings for high temperatures, predicting that the widespread hot weather would persist for the next three days. Some areas in regions like Huang-Huai, Jiang-Huai, Jiang-Han, and Jiangnan could experience temperatures ranging from 37°C to 39°C, with local temperatures exceeding 40°C.
The central meteorological department stated that starting from the 6th, many places would face continuous high temperatures unseen during this period in history. For example, Jinan is expected to experience consecutive high temperatures for the next 7 days, and Nanchang will have 6 days of high temperatures. Cities such as Zhengzhou, Jinan, Wuhan, Changsha, Nanchang, Shanghai, and Hangzhou will feel the scorching heat throughout the entire day in the next 5 days.