There was barely enough room to tread water as thousands of swimmers crowded into a pool in an attempt to escape China’s scorching heatwave.
But the fact there was no elbow room was not going to stop the fun in the world’s most populous nation.
Families desperate to escape the heat grabbed their rubber rings to jostle for space at a local pool in Nanjing, the capital of the Jiangsu Province.
Rubber ring to rubber ring: Swimmers still manage to smile despite being crammed into a swimming pool in Nanjing, China, as a heatwave sweeps across the country
A heatwave has blasted many parts of China with temperatures reaching a sweltering 40 degrees.
Stretches of sand were covered in a kaleidoscope of colour as beach-goers struggled to find a spot free for their towel.
With a population of over a billion, China’s inhabitants will be hard pressed to find relief.
: Beach-goers struggled to find a free spot in Dalian
And with crammed pools and thousands flocking to the sea, residents had to resort to jumping into the polluted Yangtze river to cool off.
As the Shanghai Central Meteorological Observatory issued a red alert on high temperature, some took to more invetive measures to protect themselves from the sultry air.
Children took advantage of the weather to run amock in the fountains of People’s Square.
Running amok: Children play in the fountains at People’s Square, Shanghai
Others ignored health and safety hazards to dive off steel platforms on wooden columns into the Yangtze River.
But it wasn’t just children feeling the heat – as one monkey found that the best way to battle humidity was with a refreshing ice lolly.
Residents of Hubei province even crowded into an indoor pool as desperate swimmers must have felt little relief from the hot spell.
Relief: Swimmers attempt to escape the heat at an indoor pool in Wuhan
The country is now bracing for extreme weather, with strong gales and soaring temperatures in recent weeks serving as harbingers of disasters to come.
Rainstorms have already wreaked havoc on southern parts of China leaving dozens people dead or missing and forcing many more to evacuate their homes.
Rainstorms have already wreaked havoc on southern parts of China leaving dozens people dead or missing and forcing many more to evacuate their homes.
Cooling off: Temperatures reached as high as 40 degrees forcing many Chinese to seek relief in swimming pools and even the polluted Yangtze river
Sweet treat: A monkey feels the heat and cools off with an ice lolly
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Thousands try escape China’s heatwave
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