"Raw Shrimp Turns Red"... China Suffering from 'Worst Heatwave' Over 41 Degrees

China Faces Water Shortage, Wildfires, and Power Crisis Following Heatwave and Drought

In China, live shrimp were cooked inside a bag due to the heatwave. Recently, southern China has been experiencing a severe heatwave, breaking daily high-temperature records.
Photo by Baidu capture.

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoon Seul-gi] Amid the worst heatwave in China, there have been cases where live shrimp turned red inside their bags as if cooked.

According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 19th, Mr. Pangmo, who lives in Xinyang County, Henan Province, discovered that some shrimp had turned red as if boiled less than an hour after buying live shrimp at a supermarket around 9 a.m. on the 15th.

Mr. Pangmo said, "The shrimp were very fresh when I bought them. I once placed the shrimp bag on a hot floor and also put it on the back seat of an electric bicycle," adding, "(The shrimp turning red) is probably due to the hot weather." The temperature in the area reached 41 degrees Celsius that day.

Later, this incident became a hot topic after Mr. Pangmo posted a video of the cooked-looking shrimp on social media (SNS). Netizens who saw Mr. Pangmo’s post reacted with comments such as "Since they are already cooked, there is no need to cook them again," and "Saved on gas bills." Another netizen said, "When the air temperature is above 40 degrees, the ground temperature can rise up to 70 degrees, so it seems the shrimp at the bottom were cooked during transportation."

Meanwhile, southern China has been experiencing a severe heatwave recently, breaking daily high-temperature records. Chongqing, the city most affected by the heatwave, recorded 45 degrees Celsius at 4 p.m. on the 18th, surpassing the previous highest temperature of 44.6 degrees.

Damage from the heatwave and drought continues. About 830,000 people are facing water shortages, 1.18 million hectares of crops have been damaged by drought, and some production facilities in certain provinces and cities have halted operations due to power shortages. As the hot and dry weather continues, wildfires have also occurred consecutively. Following two wildfires on the 17th, two large-scale wildfires broke out on the 18th as well.