Wuhan Pool Parties Bring Post-Coronavirus Relief in China

Thousands gather for pool party in Wuhan, China. (Getty Images)
Thousands gather for pool party in Wuhan, China. (Getty Images)
TT
20

Wuhan Pool Parties Bring Post-Coronavirus Relief in China

Thousands gather for pool party in Wuhan, China. (Getty Images)
Thousands gather for pool party in Wuhan, China. (Getty Images)

For more than two months, the 11 million residents of Wuhan endured a strict lockdown as coronavirus raced around the city in central China.

Now, some are letting loose en masse at rocking nighttime pool parties at a popular amusement park chain. The Wuhan Maya Beach Water Park reopened in late June, and the crowds have picked up this month.

Wuhan was the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in China and saw the most deaths. The city and most of the surrounding province was locked down from late January to early April. People couldn’t leave or enter the city and were mostly restricted to their homes.

The spread of the disease has been all but eradicated in China, though isolated outbreaks pop up sporadically.

Outdoor attractions and tourist sites have gradually reopened across the country with restrictions.

In order to enter the Wuhan water park, party-goers need to reserve tickets online in advance with their national ID number. On the day, they need to present their ID and a green health code generated from mobile apps that track people’s movements and whether they are subject to virus quarantine.

The Maya Beach chain is holding similar parties at other water parks including those in Shanghai and Chongqing.



Heatwave Leaves Moroccan Cities Sweltering in Record-breaking Temperatures

People cool off at a beach during a heatwave in Rabat on June 29, 2025. (AFP)
People cool off at a beach during a heatwave in Rabat on June 29, 2025. (AFP)
TT
20

Heatwave Leaves Moroccan Cities Sweltering in Record-breaking Temperatures

People cool off at a beach during a heatwave in Rabat on June 29, 2025. (AFP)
People cool off at a beach during a heatwave in Rabat on June 29, 2025. (AFP)

Monthly temperature records have been broken across Morocco, sometimes topping seasonal norms by as much as 20 degrees Celsius, the national meteorological office said Sunday, as the North African kingdom was gripped by a heatwave.

"Our country has experienced, between Friday 27 and Saturday 28 of June, a 'chegui' type heatwave characterized by its intensity and geographical reach," the meteorological office (DGM) said in a report shared with AFP.

The heatwave, which has also struck across the Strait of Gibraltar in southern Europe, has affected numerous regions in Morocco.

According to the DGM, the most significant temperature anomalies have been on the Atlantic plains and interior plateaus.

In the coastal city of Casablanca, the mercury reached 39.5C (103 Fahrenheit), breaching the previous record of 38.6C set in June 2011.

In Larache, 250 kilometers (150 miles) up the coast, a peak temperature of 43.8C was recorded, 0.9C above the previous June high, set in 2017.

And in central Morocco's Ben Guerir, the thermometers hit 46.4C, besting the two-year-old record by 1.1C.

In total, more than 17 regions sweltered under temperatures above 40C, the DGM said, with Atlantic areas bearing the brunt.

"Coastal cities like Essaouira recorded temperatures 10C or 20C above their usual averages" for June, the DGM said.

Inland cities such as Marrakesh, Fez, Meknes and Beni Mellal experienced heat 8C to 15C above the norm, with Tangier in the far north at the bottom end of that scale.

The forecast for the days ahead indicates continuing heat in the interior of Morocco due to a so-called Saharan thermal depression, an intense dome of heat over the desert.