A heat wave continued to scorch Japan on Monday, with some regions seeing temperatures hitting record highs for the year.

Temperatures topped 39 degrees in Ibi gawa and Tajimi in Gifu Prefecture in western Japan. The mercury climbed above 38 in eastern and central regions, according to the Meteorological Agency.

Of the agency's 927 monitoring points, 186 logged 35 degrees or higher, it said.

Over 2,000 people were taken to hospitals for heat exhaustion or heatstroke, and five died on Monday as the three-day weekend drew to a close, according to a Kyodo News tally. On Sunday, two people died and over 2,000 were transported to hospitals.