A record high temperature has been reported in Vietnam, and climatologists are warning that such extreme weather events will continue. The country’s scientists have warned that global warming is exacerbating adverse weather conditions, as the region was sweltering in April, as record temperatures were also recorded in neighboring countries.

Vietnam recorded a temperature of 44.1 degrees Celsius (111.38 degrees Fahrenheit) on Saturday, breaking 2019’s record of 43.4 degrees Celsius, according to the National Hydrometeorological Prediction Center. Farmer Nguyen Thi Lan told AFP that temperatures in the central city of Da Nang are rising steadily, forcing workers to return to work earlier than usual.

“We had to finish by 10:00 to avoid the heat,” he said.

Lan said forecasters predict temperatures will rise to around 40 degrees Celsius.

“But at noon I think it was much warmer.”

Weather in Vietnam changes from north to south, but the whole country is now entering its hottest summer months. The record temperature was recorded indoors at Hoi Suan station in northern Thanh Hoa province. It surpassed the previous high of 43.4 degrees Celsius recorded in April 2019 in the Huong He district in central Ha Tinh province.

“This is a concern in the context of climate change and global warming,” climate change expert Nguyen Ngoc Huy told AFP from the capital Hanoi.

“I believe this record will be repeated many times over,” he said. “This confirms that extreme climate models have been validated.”

Meteorologists and officials across the country have warned citizens not to leave their homes during the hottest hours of the day. According to state media, Da Nang has asked Vietnam’s ministries of industry and electricity to “cooperate to effectively deal with heat, possible drought and water shortages.”

Authorities also asked the city’s water company to provide adequate “domestic water supply”. At noon on Saturday, downtown Hanoi was nearly empty as most people stayed indoors to avoid the sun.

strong heat

In April, temperatures reigned in Asian countries – the temperature was at a record or almost record level. The Thai Meteorological Office reported a record temperature of 44.6 degrees Celsius in the western province of Tak, while Myanmar media reported that the highest temperature in a decade in a city in the east of the country was 43.8 degrees.

Although both countries experience a warm period, usually before the rainy season, the intensity of the heat has exceeded previous records. Further west, the capital of Bangladesh, which has long suffered from climate change, has recorded its highest temperature since the 1960s.

At the same time, India’s meteorological services said temperatures in some parts of the country were about three to four degrees above normal. A recent report by the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warned that “any increase in global warming will exacerbate multiple and simultaneous dangers”.