Temperatures are soaring to extremes more often even as Asia faces record Covid-19 surges. Millions of people from Bangladesh to Vietnam are stuck inside baking homes. Yet many still need to get outside to carry on their daily lives and survive even when they face sweltering heat. More than ever, we must do more to keep people safe, with concrete steps to prevent death and by taking early lifesaving action.
In much of Asia and many areas around the world, heatwaves are getting hotter, they are happening more often and lasting longer according to a University of New South Wales study. As heat rises, so does the risk of death from this silent killer.
Already thousands die each year globally due to heatwaves. Between 2030 and 2050, climate change is forecast to cause around 250,000 additional deaths per year, according to the World Health Organization. And it's getting hotter. 2019 and 2020 were two of the warmest years on record.
Countries like Vietnam and the Philippines are feeling the heat. In recent years there have been alarming rates of heatwaves in Southeast Asia with two or more days above 35C. Big cities across Asia magnify the effect of heatwaves as the scorching heat is trapped in surfaces such as buildings and pavements, creating an urban heat island effect.
Extreme heat places terrible stress on the body and older people are at most risk of heatstroke that can be fatal if it's not treated. Heatwaves killed more people than any other type of disaster in 2020 according to the United Nations. Yet in many countries, heat-related illness is often not recognised as the cause of death. It's likely that globally, heatwaves are causing thousands more early deaths every year. Studies in Vietnam and other countries in Asia show that heatwaves increase the risk of hospitalisation in every part of the country.
In recent weeks as people struggle with Covid-19, there have been heatwaves in India, Bangladesh and Vietnam. Millions of people who work outside suffer the most. And they are often the poorest and most vulnerable, including older people.
More accurate forecasts are available enabling the Red Cross to prepare in advance for extreme heatwaves and take action to help reduce their impact on vulnerable people. In a pioneering move, the Red Cross worked with the Vietnam Institute of Meteorology, Hydrology and Climate Change to develop a Heat Index and a 'trigger level' specifically for the Vietnam Red Cross. This helps to identify when and where the impact of a heatwave will be most severe such that it activates a Red Cross response system.
The Vietnam Red Cross is now prepared to take urgent early action in case of any forecasted heatwaves to protect more than 25,000 outdoor workers in three cities from the scorching heat.
Cooling centres will be set up in case a heatwave is approaching in the cities of Hanoi, Hai Phong and Danang. These will be located near informal settlements, markets and building sites so that street vendors, ship workers, motorbike taxis and construction workers can be reached with information material to avoid the extreme heat.
The cooling centres are ready to be set up as massive tents equipped with cooling fans, sprinklers and an isolating roof that offers an air-conditioned place. Airconditioned cooling buses will circulate in the main streets and direct people to the cooling centres. At the centres, Vietnam Red Cross volunteers will provide health advice and care, water, cold tea and fresh towels to visitors.
Preventing death from heat involves simple steps. It makes good sense to invest in early action to prevent countless deaths and suffering as we face mounting catastrophes.
There is growing evidence that early actions are more effective, more cost-efficient and help people cope and recover faster. That's why the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is investing around a quarter of a million US dollars in the Vietnam Red Cross to implement early actions once a forecast of an extreme heatwave is available. Globally, this is the first instance of early action being initiated in response to heatwaves.
In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, it's more important than ever that the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and other agencies are working alongside government authorities, to help people be better prepared with forecast information and pre-positioned relief supplies.
Agencies such as the United Nations and the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance are also investing in early action alongside the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Asia and around the world. But we must do much more.
We have the science with more accurate forecasts for heatwaves, typhoons and other disasters. Based on this science, we can and must take early action every time to prevent unnecessary loss of life and suffering.
None of us wants to lose our grandmother, mother or young child in one of these disasters if it can be easily avoided.
The time is ripe to invest much more in early action in disasters, rather than mopping up the mess afterwards, often when it's too late.
Kathryn Clarkson is the Head of Delegation, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.