The World Health Organisation has warned that current scorching temperatures are merely a "dress rehearsal" for future record-breaking heatwaves, which will become more frequent and intense. Brits face a future of booze bans and hiding in libraries to escape killer heat, while builders could be paid furlough not to work during deadly 40C conditions that will become the norm.
Europe's Heatwave Death Toll
The WHO revealed that Europe has lost 200,000 people from extreme heat in the past four years. It urged the UK to implement an urgent action plan that may include restrictions on alcohol consumption during heatwaves, establishing "climate shelters" in libraries, and providing government cash to protect construction workers from dangerous conditions.
"This heatwave is a dress rehearsal. The summers ahead will be harder," the WHO stated. "More than half of European countries still do not have a comprehensive heat-health action plan in place. That needs to change."
Rising Temperatures and Health Risks
"Europe is warming at more than twice the global average. Heatwaves are no longer one-off freak events. They are recurring crises, and they are getting more frequent, stronger and lasting longer," the WHO added. "Every summer we fail to prepare for them is a summer we pay for in lives."
The WHO also advised people to keep blinds and curtains closed during the day to block heat, open windows at night, and drink more water while avoiding sugary, alcoholic, or caffeinated drinks. Shock figures showed that around 60% of hospital admissions in Europe during last week's heatwave involved people aged 75 and older.
Record Emergency Calls
London's Ambulance Service experienced its busiest day on record last Friday, handling 8,869 emergency calls in a single day. The WHO noted that heat-related deaths in Europe in 2023 would have been around 80% higher without existing adaptation measures. For people aged 80 or above, deaths could have been twice as high.
"Heat-health action plans, early warnings, cooling spaces, outreach to vulnerable people – these are not bureaucratic exercises. They are saving lives right now – we need more of them, across all of the European Region," the WHO concluded.
