COPENHAGEN: The European branch of the World Health Organization announced on Friday that the heatwave engulfing Europe has resulted in over 1,700 fatalities just on the Iberian peninsula, and it is urging cooperation to combat climate change. Heat is fatal.
Hans Kluge, the WHO’s regional director for Europe, stated that thousands of people had died in recent years as a result of extended heatwaves that were usually accompanied by wildfires and severe heat.
“This year, we have already seen more than 1,700 avoidable deaths in only Spain and Portugal,” Kluge continued.
The regional director emphasized that persons at either end of the life spectrum – infants and older people – are at particular risk and that exposure to excessive heat “frequently exacerbates pre-existing health issues.”
