Children living in Japan’s hottest city will be given specially designed umbrellas to protect them from the heat, after a summer that saw record-breaking temperatures in many parts of the country.

Local authorities in Kumagaya in Saitama prefecture have devised an umbrella that keeps out the rain and doubles as a parasol, the Mainichi Shimbun reported.

The umbrellas, which bear the city’s logo and weigh just 336 grams, will be distributed to 9,000 primary schoolchildren next week, the newspaper said.

Kumagaya, a city of about 195,000 located 60km north of Tokyo, regularly records the highest temperatures in Japan partly as a result of warm downslope winds created by the Foehn Effect.

The city’s government has for the past two years advised younger children to shield themselves from the sun with regular umbrellas on their way to and from school to prevent heatstroke, but some questioned their ability to block out sunlight. ...continue reading