Japan found itself sweltering under an unseasonable heat wave on Sunday that saw temperatures peaking above 38 degrees Celsius in many parts of Hokkaido, a new high for the northernmost island.
Temperatures in the coastal town of Saroma hit 39.5 degrees on Sunday afternoon, the highest recorded in Japan in over 25 years. The previous record for May was 37.2 degrees, set in 1993 in Chichibu city in Saitama prefecture, northwest of Tokyo.
The heatwave prompted the Hokkaido Railway Company to cancel at least 40 train services in eastern Hokkaido over concerns the extreme heat may warp the railway tracks and cause trains to derail.
Japan’s weather agency said soaring temperatures have been caused by a warm air mass that is not typically seen until the peak of summer. The heatwave is expected to continue through Monday before subsiding.
Temperatures breached 35 degrees at 53 locations and 30 degrees at 513 spots, from data gathered from 926 weather monitoring posts across Japan, Kyodo News reported.