<
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jun/21/heatwave-expected-deaths-england-and-wales-analysis>
"Almost 600 people are expected to die early in the heatwave roasting England
and Wales, a rapid analysis has found.
The surge in deaths would not be occurring without human-caused global heating,
the scientists said, with temperatures boosted by 2C-4C by the pollution from
fossil fuels.
Premature deaths will occur across the two countries but the highest mortality
rates are expected in London and the West Midlands. Most of the deaths – 85% –
will be people over 65 years old, who are more vulnerable to the extreme heat.
People in inner-city homes are also at high risk.
More than 10,000 people died before their time in summer heatwaves between 2020
and 2024, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). The government’s
preparations to protect people from the escalating impacts of the climate
crisis were condemned as “inadequate, piecemeal and disjointed” by official
advisers in April.
The 32C heat that will be endured by people in the south-east of England on
Saturday will have been made 100 times more likely by the climate crisis,
scientists said on Friday.
“Heatwaves are silent killers – people who lose their lives in them typically
have pre-existing health conditions and rarely have heat listed as a
contributing cause of death,” said Dr Garyfallos Konstantinoudis, at Imperial
College London, who is part of the team that estimated the number of deaths.
“This real-time analysis reveals the hidden toll of heatwaves and we want it to
help raise the alarm,” he said. “Heatwaves are an under-appreciated threat in
the UK and they’re becoming more dangerous with climate change.”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
