BRUSSELS — The record-smashing heat wave plaguing Western Europe is a “brutal” reminder of the cost of global warming, the United Nations’ climate chief has warned.
France has reported several heat-related deaths and the United Kingdom saw its hottest May day on record as the western part of the continent swelters under a heat dome, a persistent high-pressure system trapping hot air beneath it.
The scientific consensus is that heat waves are becoming hotter, longer and more frequent due to human-caused climate change, noted Simon Stiell, executive secretary of the U.N.’s climate body.
“This latest heatwave in Europe is a brutal reminder of the spiraling impacts of the climate crisis, both human and economic,” Stiell said in a statement Wednesday. “The main culprit is the world’s addiction to burning coal, oil and gas, and destroying forests.”
