Europe must act quickly to face extreme heat as temperatures surpass 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) and thousands of excess deaths are predicted in the coming days.
Southern Europe is in the midst of a soaring heat wave with temperatures reaching up to 46 C (115 F) in Spain’s Huelva region — a new national record for June. Meanwhile, Italy, Greece, Portugal and the Western Balkans are also facing scorching highs, along with wildfires and civilian victims.
A World Health Organization expert issued a stark warning Monday, calling for more action to stop tens of thousands of “unnecessary and largely preventable deaths.”
“It’s no longer a question of if we will have a heat wave, but how many are we going to experience this year and how long will they last,” said Marisol Yglesias Gonzalez, technical officer for climate change and health at the WHO in Bonn.
