However, the heatwave is set to continue for those in South China, a meteorologist said Monday.

The cold air has been forecast to sweep into the northern parts of North China Wednesday, lowering the temperature in the region, predicted Chen Tingliang of Beijing Special Meteorology Observatory.

Chen attributed the recent fast soaring temperature across the nation to the dominance of a stable warm anticyclone in the central and southern parts of China.

Northwest, Southwest, and East regions affected include Shaanxi, Shanxi, Hebei, Henan, Shandong, Jiangsu, Anhui, Hubei and Sichuan provinces, where the average temperature over the weekend was recorded as 38 C.

Southern parts of North China's Hebei Province, eastern parts of East China's Shandong Province and most of Central China's Henan Province Monday reached a recorded temperature of 42 C.

Chen said the weather will remain blistering in the area of the Yangtze River encompassing Chongqing in Southwest China, Wuhan in Central China and Nanjing in East China.

The three cities, together with Xi'an in Northwest China, are called the "four big burners" in the country for their notable high temperatures in the summer.

But Chen said Xi'an's temperature will drop in the next few days due to the cold air.

High temperatures hitting Xi'an last week reportedly increased cases of diarrhoea, colds and heatstroke, according to hospital officials.

The number of patients suffering from diarrhoea sharply increased because of the high temperature, which resulted in food turning bad quite easily, said Xu Bo, a doctor at Shaanxi Provincial Hospital.

"Drinking too many cold beverages and using air conditioners for too long also made people sick," he added.

The high temperature has also increased pressure on local electricity supplies, as more people resorted to air-conditioners.

In some districts of the city, the supply lines were cut off due to an overload, according to Zhu Yuezhou, director of Xi'an Power Supply Bureau.

In Xi'an Zoo, workers made sure the animals enjoy the weather by providing them with watermelon and ice.

Xi'an, one of the most famous tourist destinations in China, made every effort to provide better services for the visitors during the heatwave, and no tourist was reported to have been adversely affected by the heat, according to Zhou Aiquan, director of Xi'an Tourism Bureau.

(China Daily July 16, 2002)