Temperatures in Beijing increased above 40 degrees Celsius on Thursday for the first time since 2014, breaking the record for the hottest day in June and the Chinese capital warned of extremely hot weather over the weekend, Reuters reported.

A weather station on the southern outskirts of Beijing recorded 40.1°C at 1:25 p.m. local time, according to the municipal weather bureau, surpassing 40°C for the first time since May 29, 2014.

Thursday was also the hottest June day in Beijing since modern weather records began. The previous all-time record was set on June 10, 1961, when the temperature reached 40.6°C.

Early on Thursday, the city of nearly 22 million people declared a code orange, the second-highest weather warning level, saying temperatures could rise to 39°C in most parts of the city from Thursday to Saturday.

Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei and Shandong in northern and eastern China were hit by heatwaves last week, prompting local authorities to step up efforts to protect crops, ensure the safety of tourists and suspend outdoor work during the hottest part of the day.

Last week, the national weather bureau issued a heatstroke warning, almost two weeks earlier than in previous years, while new record temperatures for the month of June were recorded in cities across northern China.

In the port city of Tianjin, increased demand for air conditioners pushed the load on the power grid to 14.54 million kilowatts on June 15, up 23 percent from a year earlier.

China has a four-tier color-coded system for weather warnings, with red being the most serious, followed by orange, yellow and blue.

An orange alert is issued when the maximum temperature exceeds 40°C in one day or remains above 37°C for two consecutive days.

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