Heatwave sweeps Japan leaving many dead
Pastor Dale Morgan
Heatwave sweeps Japan leaving many dead*
16 Aug 2007 06:11:32 GMT
Source: Reuters
TOKYO, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Temperatures hit record highs in Japan on
Thursday as a heatwave sweeps the country, leaving many dead over the
last few days.
In Tajimi city, 400 km (250 miles) west of Tokyo, the mercury hit 40.9
degrees Celsius (105.6 Fahrenheit), topping the previous record of 40.8
logged in 1933, the Meteorological Agency said.
At least seven elderly people have died from heatstroke in the last two
days, including a 59-year-old man found dead in his living room in a
city near Tokyo on Thursday.
The energy market is watching the weather closely this summer after a
strong earthquake last month damaged and closed a nuclear reactor -- the
world's largest -- that supplies most of the electricity to the Tokyo
region.
Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) <9501.T>, the operator of the
Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant in Niigata prefecture has said it may struggle
to meet peak power demand from the capital if temperatures go above 35.3
Celsius, as they have done for the last few days.
The summer heat and humidity result in greater use of air conditioners,
boosting electricity demand.
But TEPCO downplayed worries of an imminent power shortage, saying
electricity demand tends to fall during this week's "obon" holidays as
major consumers such as manufacturers shut their factories.