Japan had hottest July in 125 years

Celina Ali

Japan has had the hottest July since the country’s weather officials began taking data in 1898.

Japan’s Meteorological Agency says temperatures rose nationwide last month as warm air from the south flowed in around the dominant Pacific high pressure system.

Temperatures hit life-threatening levels of 38 degrees Celsius or higher later in the month.

The country’s July average temperature was 1.91 degrees higher than normal.

By region, the average in northern Japan was 2.8 degrees higher than normal, eastern Japan 2 degrees, western Japan 1.1 degrees, and Okinawa and Amami region 0.5 degrees.

The July monthly average in northern Japan was the highest since the regional statistics began in 1946. Agency officials attribute this to higher sea surface temperatures, mainly along the Pacific.

A number of locations in eastern Japan set new records, too, with Tokyo’s average 3 degrees higher than normal.

The extreme heat is expected to continue for another week or so.

Weather officials are urging people to take precautions against heatstroke.