A searing heatwave in parts of southern Asia in April was made at least 30 times more likely by climate breakdown, according to a study by international scientists.Unusually high temperatures of up to 45C (113F) were recorded last month in monitoring stations in parts of India, Bangladesh, Thailand and Laos.The heat caused deaths and widespread hospitalisations, damaged roads, sparked fires and led to school closures in the region, the study by the World Weather Attribution group found.In Thailand, high temperatures mixed with humidity meant some parts of the country felt above 50C (122F).
In India, several regions were affected and 13 people died due to the heat at a public event outside Mumbai.
The eastern Indian state of West Bengal closed all schools and colleges for a week.The study found that temperatures were at least 2C (3.6F) hotter in the region because of climate breakdown.If the global average temperature reaches 2C warmer than pre-industrial times, the April heatwave could occur every one to two years in India and Bangladesh, the study said.
Currently, the world is about 1.1C to 1.2C (2F to 2.2F) warmer.We see again and again that climate change dramatically increases the frequency and intensity of heatwaves, one of the deadliest weather events there are, said Friederike Otto, a senior climate scientist at Imperial College London and one of the studys authors.skip past newsletter promotionThe planet's most important stories.
Get all the week's environment news - the good, the bad and the essentialPrivacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties.
For more information see our Privacy Policy.
We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.after newsletter promotionHeat action plans which are government-run and funded and aim to help people deal with extreme heat through awareness programmes, training for healthcare workers and affordable cooling methods need to be implemented faster in India and other heat-affected countries, the studys authors said.Access to healthcare and to cooling solutions like fans and air conditioners is missing for a lot of the population in this region, said Emmanuel Raju, the director of the University of Copenhagens Centre for Disaster Research and another of the studys authors.Raju said heat affected the poorest people and people whose work required them to be outside farmers, street vendors and construction workers the most.Its important to talk about who can cope and adapt to heat, he said.
Many are still recovering from the pandemic, and from past heatwaves and cyclones, which leaves them trapped in a vicious cycle.The southern Asian region is considered among the most vulnerable to climate change in the world, according to numerous global climate studies.Scientists say drastic action to reduce carbon dioxide emissions immediately is the only solution.Heatwaves will become more common, temperatures will rise even more and the number of hot days will increase and become more frequent if we continue to pump greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, said Chaya Vaddhanaphuti, a lecturer at Chiang Mai University in Thailand and a co-author of the study..
This article first appeared/also appeared in theguardian.com