BEIJING - China's meteorological authorities on Tuesday issued a heat alert for regions in northern, central and eastern China, saying that temperatures in those regions may climb as high as 39 degrees Celsius over the next few days.

According to the alert, which was issued by the National Meteorological Center (NMC), scorching weather with temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius will persist in the municipalities of Beijing and Tianjin, as well as parts of the provinces of Hebei, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Henan, Shandong, Anhui and Hubei over the next three days.

Temperatures from 37 to 39 degrees Celsius will grill southern Hebei province, central and northern regions in Henan province, southern Shanxi, central Shaanxi province and northwestern Hubei province, according to the NMC's forecast.

The NMC forecast also said that rains will continue in the drought-afflicted middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River next week, which may lead to flooding in the region.