レールゆがむ猛暑、ドラえもんで雨乞い　タイ

【バンコクＡＦＰ＝時事】東南アジアは現在、鉄道のレールがゆがむほどの猛暑に見舞われている。ここ何か月も雨が降っていないタイ中部の村では４月３０日、雨乞いの儀式に日本の人気キャラクター「ドラえもん」が担ぎ出された。（写真は、タイ南部ナコンシータマラート県のロンピブン～カオチュムトーン間で、暑さのためにゆがんだ線路のレールを補修する作業員）
　ナコンサワン県パユハキーリー郡の村では見物人が水をまく中、飾りの付いた衣装をまとった人々が、ドラえもんのぬいぐるみの入ったかごを担いで村を練り歩いた。乾季に行われる伝統的な雨乞いの儀式「へーナーンメーオ」（雌猫の行列の意）に新しいアイデアを取り入れたものだ。
　猫が水を嫌うことはよく知られているが、ここでは猫が水にぬれたときのうるさい鳴き声が雨を呼ぶと考えられている。
　今ではこの儀式に本物の猫ではなく、ドラえもんや「ハローキティ」の人形を担ぐ村人が多い。
　この儀式が行われた日、気温が４１度に達したタイ南部ナコンシータマラート県では、暑さで鉄道のレールがゆがみ、作業員が水をかけて元に戻そうとしていた。
　タイ国鉄は、４月３０日にロンピブンとカオチュムトーンの間でレールがゆがんだのは「酷暑」のせいだと説明。「職員が水と氷でレールを冷やした」と述べた。
　専門家は気候変動によって熱波の頻度、長さ、激しさが増していると指摘している。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2024/05/07-16:45）

As millions across Southeast Asia suffer a blistering heatwave that is melting railway tracks, a Thai village resorted to an unusual method to seek rain: parading a Japanese cartoon cat.
Thailand has sweltered in recent weeks as the temperature climbs across the region, with experts saying climate change is making heatwaves more frequent, longer and more intense.
In the kingdom's central Nakhon Sawan province -- which has been without rain for months -- villagers in Phayuha Khiri District hoisted Japanese manga cat Doraemon to break the drought.
Sparkly dressed paraders bore a tinsel-decked cage containing the stuffed toy through the village while onlookers sprinkled it with water.
Theirs was a new take on an old dry season ritual known as Hae Nang Meaw, literally, the parading of a female cat.
The well-known feline aversion to water means some link the animals to rainfall, with their furious meows after being drenched thought to summon precipitation.
Most villagers no longer use real cats, lifting Doraemon or HelloKitty dolls instead.
As Doraemon was paraded in Thailand's heartland on Tuesday, in the south, the searing heat buckled railway tracks in Nakhon Si Thammarat province.
Railway workers doused the rails with water to try to bend them back into shape after the mercury hit 41 degrees Celsius (105 Fahrenheit).
The State Railway of Thailand said the extreme heat was to blame for the tracks warping between Ron Phibun and Khao Chum Thong on April 30.
Officials brought water and ice to cool down the rails, the statement said, with the tracks usable again after an hour-long dousing.
Deputy state railway governor Jaray Rungthani said engineers would be keeping a close eye in the coming days as temperatures remained high.
All railway station managers will help passengers, and be ready to handle the heatwave situation based on the forecast, he said.
The heat gripping much of the region -- from Bangladesh to the Philippines -- has strained energy grids and forced millions of children to stay home as schools close.
While the El Nino phenomenon is helping drive this year's exceptionally warm weather, Asia is also warming faster than the global average, according to the UN's World Meteorological Organization.