TOKYO (AP) - The Latest on the heat wave in Northeast Asia (all times local):
5:40 p.m.
On the hottest day so far this year, the governor of Japan’s capital says that measures to deal with the heat are one of the pillars of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The temperature reached 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit) in Tokyo on Monday.
Gov. Yuriko Koike told a news conference that the city has been working to address concerns about the heat for both fans and athletes.
The marathon and some other outdoor Olympic events will start early in the morning. Other steps include developing road pavements that emit less surface heat, setting up mist sprays and planting tall roadside trees.
Japan and South Korea are experiencing an extended heat wave that has been blamed for 50 deaths.
Koike said that “the weather recently in Japan is like being in a sauna.”
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3:10 p.m.
Japanese media say a city north of Tokyo has reached the highest temperature ever recorded in the country.
The temperature hit 41.1 degrees Celsius (106 degrees Fahrenheit) in Kumagaya on Monday afternoon.
Japan and South Korea are in the middle of an extended heat wave. Japan’s Kyodo News agency has tallied more than 40 deaths in Japan.
Kumagaya is about 65 kilometers (40 miles) northwest of Tokyo.
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1:40 p.m.
Searing hot temperatures are forecast for wide swaths of Japan and South Korea in a long-running heat wave that’s killed at least two dozen people.
The mercury is expected to reach 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit) on Monday in the city of Nagoya in central Japan and reach 37 (99 F) in Tokyo.
South Korea’s Yonhap news agency says the country’s highest-ever morning low was recorded in the city of Gangneung, where the temperature was 31 (88 F) at 6:45 a.m. The morning low in Seoul was 29 (84 F).
Hundreds of people have been rushed to Japanese hospitals with heat stroke symptoms in the more than weeklong heat wave. Deaths have been reported almost every day.
Authorities in Japan warned people to stay inside and use air conditioning.
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