More than 175 thousand people die from them every year heat waves The fastest-warming continent in Europe warns in a report by the World Health Organization (WHO).
According to the organization, the European region of the WHO, which includes Asian countries such as Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, accounts for 36% of the 489,000 people who die from heat on a global scale every year.
“People in the region and its 53 member countries are paying the highest price,” said WHO regional director Hans Kluge.
Over the past two decades, heat deaths in the region have increased by 30%.
“Extreme temperatures exacerbate chronic diseases, particularly cardiovascular, respiratory and cerebrovascular diseases, mental health and diabetes-related disorders,” notes WHO Europe.
The warning comes shortly after Greece’s existence Longest heat wave since 1980 for more than two weeks, the temperature in the country has exceeded 37 degrees.
Heat stroke
Heat waves they also cause heat stress “this occurs when the human body is unable to maintain temperatures between 36 and 37 degrees Celsius, and is currently the leading cause of climate-related deaths in the region.”
According to the report, the number of heat victims will “increase” in the coming years due to climate change, which increases the intensity and duration of heat waves.
Average temperatures in Europe are rising nearly twice as fast as the rest of the planet.
“The three warmest years on record in the WHO European region have been since 2020, and the ten warmest years since 2007,” Kluge said.
Temperature record
According to the European Copernicus service and the World Meteorological Organization, June this year was the hottest on record globally, July is also “almost certain” how about the hottest of all time.
Copernicus data shows that the average global temperature for the first 23 days of July reached 16.95 degrees Celsius, almost 0.3 degrees above the previous record set in July 2019.
In addition, it exceeded the international target for July this year climate therefore, by the end of the century, the increase in average temperature should not exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels.
Exceeding the limit in July does not mean all hope is lost, as the Paris Agreement’s goal is to average over at least 20 years.
Based on available data, some climatologists are even predicting 2024 as a whole It will surpass 2023’s record as the hottest year uh, probably Hottest in 100,000 years.