High Temperature Causes Electricity Cuts

Millions of residents in southwest China's Sichuan Province have been subjected to power cuts amid a severe heat wave and drought.

Local media reported that the power outages lasted for up to three hours in Dazhou, a city of about 5.4 million people.

And the media indicated that factories in the province were forced to reduce production or stop working as part of emergency measures to redirect energy supplies to homes. Officials say hydropower reservoirs are now reduced by up to half.

Temperatures across Sichuan and neighboring provinces have topped 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in recent days.

As a result, the demand for electricity to run air conditioning equipment in offices and homes has increased, which has put energy companies under severe pressure.

The Yangtze River - the longest waterway in Asia - is now at record lows. In some areas, the usual precipitation has been reduced by less than half.

In Wuhan City, Hubei Province, the river level has fallen to its lowest level at this time of year since records began in 1865.

The drinking supply of hundreds of millions of people has not yet been affected - but there is a shortage of water to irrigate crops.

Low rainfall and high temperatures for extended periods have caused droughts that affect many European countries. It also caused a number of rivers to drop.

Several countries in Europe and North Africa are also witnessing record temperatures, in addition to the outbreak of forest fires in France, Spain, Portugal, Greece and Morocco.

Drought currently affects more than 60 percent of European land, according to the European Drought Observatory. The major rivers of Germany, England and Italy witnessed a decrease in their water level.

Pumps and cloud seeding missiles are deployed to protect this year's crops.

In recent weeks, countries such as France and Spain have had to restrict water consumption.

In parts of both countries, authorities have had to cut off the water supply under certain conditions.

On August 7, French authorities announced that the country was facing the worst drought since records began in 1958.

In Germany, the low level of the Rhine River, which flows from the Swiss Alps into the North Sea, has already forced shipping companies to sail with reduced volumes of cargo, according to Reuters news agency.

Temperatures in both Spain and France have reached unprecedented increased pressure on hospitals and power grids.

Scientists warn that climate change increases the chances of exposure to heat waves, which have become more intense and frequent.

Farmers in Italy have warned of the impact of the drought on their crops, as the water level in the Po River has fallen by three quarters compared to seasonal averages.

In Spain, firefighting teams are trying to put out forest fires in Catalonia.