China records its hottest ever temperature as mercury hits 52.2C

China experienced its hottest temperature on record as the mercury soared to 52.2C on Sunday.

The remote Sanbao Township in Turpan Depression, a deep mountain basin in Xinjiang, smashed the previous record of 50.3C as a blistering heatwave swept the country.

Meteorologists expect the sweltering heat to continue for the next five days, local newspaper Xinjiang Daily reported.

Several Chinese cities opened air raid shelters earlier this month to offer citizens relief from the extreme weather.

Many employers have been ordered to limit outdoor work after plus-40C temperatures were reported in cities including Shijiazhuang.

Northern areas have been the hottest, with Beijing recording 10 days of temperatures above 35C, the longest heatwave of its kind since 1961.

The planet registered its hottest week ever in the first seven days of July, according to the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).

Last month was also the hottest June on record, the UN body said, pointing to the effects of climate change and the early stages of El Nino, a warming of ocean surface temperatures in the Pacific.

Punishing heatwaves have also swept across the US, Mexico and southern Europe in recent weeks.

Spain, Italy, Greece and Turkey have sweltered in plus-40C heat for days as a result of an anticyclone system nicknamed Cerberus, after the multi-headed hound which guarded the underworld in Greek mythology.

The extreme weather has led to multiple health warnings in Italy, the closure of high-profile tourist destinations such as the Acropolis in Athens and forest fires burning out of control in Spain.

Italian authorities issued hot weather red alerts for 16 cities, including the capital Rome, the Tuscan city of Florence, Palermo in Sicily and Bari in the south-east.

Italy’s health minister, Orazio Schillaci, said authorities were keeping a close eye on Rome and urged people to take care.

“Going to the Colosseum when it is 43°C is not advisable, especially for an elderly person,” he told the Il Messaggero newspaper, saying people should stay indoors during the hottest part of the day.

On the Spanish island of La Palma, at least 4,000 people have had to be evacuated from their homes as forest fires burn out of control.

More than 11,000 acres of land are reported to have been destroyed by the fire which started in the early hours of Saturday and has swept across the Canary island. At least 12 houses have been destroyed.