Heavy rain hits Shanghai, with heat set to return this weekend
Rainwater accumulates on roads of Daning area in Shanghai's Jing'an Distirict due to Friday's thunderstorm.
Shanghai was hit by downpours on Friday.
The heavy rain triggered a yellow rainstorm alert and a yellow lightning alert, both the second-lowest level in the weather warning system, at around 4pm. Some districts, including Minhang and Qingpu, as well as the Pudong New Area upgraded the rain alert to an orange, the second-highest level, later.
The city's flood prevention department issued level-three emergency flood prevention response to cope with the heavy rain.
Some areas of city, such as Putuo, Yangpu and Pudong, have seen standing water on roads on Friday evening, which caused traffic congestion, according to local traffic police.
More traffic police officers stepped up effort to direct the traffic in waterlogged sections.
The scorching weather is predicted to return over the weekend, along with afternoon heavy rains and lightning. The mercury will top 35 degrees Celsius with lows between 27 and 29 degrees.
The humid and sweltering weather is also forecast to dominate the next week, with afternoon precipitation along with temperatures at around 34 degrees.
A car is seen in the rain in Changning District.
A police officer directs traffic amid Friday's heavy rain.
The Bilibili World 2023, which kicked off on Friday, also saw visitors stranded by the downpour. The air-conditioning in the National Exhibition and Convention Center was shut down due to safety concerns and the nearby Metro Lines were halted for a while.
