UV protection umbrellas, fans and ice packs: How S'poreans living overseas are coping with the heatwaves

When temperatures in Japan hit 35°C and above earlier this month, Ms Charissa Tan could only manage a 10-minute walk to the train station before she felt giddy. 

The 37-year-old later fainted from heatstroke as she was alighting from her train ride and was taken to the hospital, where she was discharged after a few hours. 

In Tokyo, where Ms Tan has been working for the last eight years, temperatures soared above 35°C for nine days straight from June 25. After weeks of extreme heat, Japan's capital finally saw a few days of rain this week.

Ms Tan is just one of many people around the world struggling with extreme weather conditions, as several countries have been plagued by heatwaves over the last few weeks.

Countries that are badly affected such as China, France and the United Kingdom have issued warnings to their citizens to avoid staying outdoors.  

After her heatstroke scare, Ms Tan, who works in marketing research, said that she now always leaves the house with an anti-UV umbrella, a big bottle of sports water, a handheld fan, and an ice pack that she wraps in a towel around her neck.