BENGALURU, India (AP) — Scorching heat in Asia and the Middle East in late April echoed last year’s destructive heat has become 45 times more likely in some parts of the continent due to human-caused climate change, a study released Tuesday concluded.
The scorching temperatures were felt across large swaths of Asia, from Gaza in the west – where more than 2 million people face shortages of drinking water, lack of healthcare and other essential goods. amid Israeli bombing — to the Philippines, in the southeast, with many parts of the continent recording temperatures well above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) for several consecutive days.
The study was released by the World Weather Attribution group of scientists, which uses established climate models to quickly determine whether human-caused climate change has played a role in extreme weather events around the world.
In the Philippines, scientists discovered that the heat was so extreme that it would have been impossible without human-caused climate change. In some parts of the Middle East, climate change has increased the probability of the event by about a factor of five.
“People suffered and died when April temperatures soared in Asia,” said study author Friederike Otto, a climate scientist at Imperial College, London. “If humans continue to burn fossil fuels, the climate will continue to warm and vulnerable people will continue to die.”
At least 28 heat-related deaths were reported in Bangladesh, as well as five in India and three in Gaza in April. Increases in heat deaths have also been reported in Thailand and the Philippines this year, according to the study.
The heat also had a major impact on agriculture, causing damage to crops and reducing yields, as well as on education, with school holidays being extended and schools closed in several countriesaffecting thousands of students.
Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam broke records for the hottest day in April, and the Philippines experienced its hottest night ever, with a minimum temperature of 29.8 degrees Celsius (85.6 degrees Fahrenheit). In India, temperatures reached 46 degrees Celsius (115 degrees Fahrenheit). The month was the hottest April on record worldwide and the eleventh consecutive month that broke the record for the hottest month.
Climate experts say extreme heat in South Asia during the pre-monsoon season is becoming more frequent and the study found that extreme temperatures are now about 0.85 degrees Celsius (1.5 Fahrenheit) hotter in the region due to climate change.
Internally displaced people, migrants and people in refugee camps were especially vulnerable to the scorching temperatures, the study found.
“These findings in scientific terms are alarming,” said Aditya Valiathan Pillai, an expert on warming plans at the New Delhi-based think tank Sustainable Futures Collaborative. “But for people living in poor conditions, it can be absolutely deadly.” Pillai was not part of the study.
Pillai said more awareness about the risks of heat, public and private investments to deal with rising heat, and more research into its impacts are needed to deal with future heatwaves.
“I think heat is now among the top risks in terms of personal health for millions of people around the world, as well as for the economic development of nations,” he said.
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Associated Press writer Seth Borenstein in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.
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Follow Sibi Arasu on Twitter at @sibi123
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