WHO: Europe fastest-warming region on Earth; sees large part of heat-related deaths

Aug. 1 (UPI) -- The World Health Organization's European Region on Thursday joined growing calls for individual action to offset extreme heat dangers amid rising global temperatures, as it was home to a large portion of heat-related deaths on Earth.

"The fact is that the adverse health effects of hot weather are largely preventable through good public health practices," Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO's Regional Director for Europe, wrote in a statement .

"So if we are better prepared for a hotter region, we will save many lives, both now and in the future."

The large part of Europe is the fastest-warming region of WHO's six global regions with European Region temperatures rising about twice the average global rate, the international organization said.

Kluge says in some places the climate crisis is now driving temperatures up to "unbearable levels" whereas Europe has had its three hottest years ever on record.

Based in Copenhagen, Denmark, WHO's European Region includes 53 member countries in a territory extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. This region, according to WHO, made up about 36%, or about 176,040 of the 489,000 heat-related deaths recorded each year from 2000 to 2019.

He cited a letter issued last week by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres , who characterized extreme heat as an "epidemic," and called for more-needed action as global temperatures rise and its consequences while each month continues to be the hottest on record.

"Extreme heat is the new abnormal," he wrote while calling for the phasing out of fossil-fuels.

"To tackle all these symptoms, we need to fight the disease," Guterres said last week, which he called "the madness of incinerating our only home."

"The disease is the addiction to fossil fuels. The disease is climate inaction. Leaders across the board must wake up and step up," he said.

A recent study revealed that oceans absorbed record levels of heat in 2023.

In June, the World Meteorological Organization said there is now an 80% likelihood Earth will exceed its global warming limits as set out and agreed upon by Paris Climate Agreement.

"We are playing Russian roulette with our planet," the U.N.'s Secretary-General wrote.

On Thursday, Kluge called for more action to limit global temperatures to under 2 degrees Celsius.

Under the Paris Agreement, 196 countries signed on to keep the long-term global average surface temperature well below the 2 degrees Celsius mark above pre-industrial levels at the turn of the 20th century and committed to pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5 degrees Celsius by the end of this century.

That 80% chance of at least one of the next five years through 2028 exceeding the agreed-upon 1.5 degrees Celsius limit established in the Paris Climate Agreement "has risen steadily" since it was signed 2015, "when such a chance was close to zero," WMO said in June.

In Europe, heat stress has been the leading cause of climate-related deaths where over the past 20 years there was a 30% increase in heat-related deaths with that number steadily rising.

Consequences of extreme temperatures can worsen chronic medical conditions -- such as cardiovascular, respiratory and cerebrovascular diseases -- mental health and diabetes, and is particularly bad for pregnant women, elderly and those living alone, Kluge added.

More than 20 European nations have set in place heat-health action plans which Kluge called "a crucial adaptation process" to make communities more heatwave resilient going into the future.

Meanwhile, WHO/Europe is in the process of updating and issuing a second edition of its heat-related action guidance plan through its European Centre for Environment and Health in Bonn, Germany.

"While this is encouraging, it is not enough to protect all communities," he said.

The UN's recent call to action identified four "critical areas," Kluge said, including the limit of the 1.5 degree Celsius point for Earth, which included caring for the vulnerable, protecting workers and "boosting the resilience" for economies and societies in the face of global changes due to hotter temperatures.

Kluge said the updated plan will "provide an evidence-based point of reference for national and local governments to establish their own plans or update existing ones" in a process that unites "actors from multiple sectors with the aim of better managing heat risks."

"We must strengthen coordinated action to protect our health from this most direct and deadliest impact of a changing climate," Europe's WHO chief says, adding that he too supports the U.N. Secretary-General's recent call to action, which he called "both urgent and timely in drawing global attention to address this global threat to public health."

For the time being, however, Kluge encouraged people to be more responsible in the heat, such as by avoid going outside or strenuous activities during peak hours, never leave children or animals parked in vehicles and to spend 2-3 hours a day in a cooler climate if needed.

He also advised to keep homes cool by using night air as a way to help reduce heat inside a home, and by utilizing shutters or blinds.

In addition, keeping the body cool and hydrated is also critical, such as drinking water regularly and avoid alcoholic or caffeinated drinks, using light and loose-fitting clothing and bed linens, taking cool showers,

"Take care of yourself and others," Kluge wrote. "Check on family, friends and neighbors, especially the elderly, who spend much of their time alone."