Sweltering heat has swept through many parts of the world in 2024, bringing record-breaking temperatures. Through the first five months of the year, nearly a fifth of the world's population — 1.5 billion people — experienced at least one day when the heat index soared past 103 degrees, according to The Washington Post.
What's happening?
The extent to which our planet's population has had to endure dangerous levels of heat and humidity this year is alarming. The National Weather Service regards a heat index value of 103 as a critical life-threatening threshold.
Symptoms of heat-related illnesses include confusion, muscle cramps, dry skin, profuse sweating, seizures, vomiting, and loss of consciousness. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, heart disease caused one-fifth of heat-related deaths in adults from 1999 to 2021. Meanwhile, a study funded by the National Institutes of Health projects cardiovascular deaths from extreme heat will likely rise.
"People typically are not aware that they're getting into trouble with the heat until they're really getting into trouble with the heat," said epidemiologist Kristie Ebi, per The Washington Post. "You see people out doing activities where it's quite warm, and suddenly somebody collapses."
Why is this analysis of the number of people enduring dangerous heat concerning?
Heat is the leading weather-related cause of death in the United States. In 2023, the National Weather Service noted that heat killed more people in the country than flooding, lightning, tornadoes, and hurricanes combined. If anything, scientists think the number of heat-related deaths is undercounted.
This summer has gotten off to a scorching start. A study by Climate Central said nearly 5 billion people endured extreme heat over nine days in June, concluding that these high temperatures were driven by climate change. Heat killed at least 1,300 people during the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia. More than 40,000 people suffered heatstroke in India, where over 100 died.
What's being done about the exposure of so many people to dangerous heat?
The National Weather Service launched a new tool earlier this year to help people assess the risk of extreme heat on their health and help protect them from heat exposure. The HeatRisk provides a seven-day heat forecast for the United States and highlights when heat might hit levels that could harm our health.
The long-term solution to extreme heat is reducing the heat-trapping gases emitted into our atmosphere, which are increasing the frequency and severity of heat waves. There are many ways that, as individuals, we can ultimately help cool the planet while improving our lives simultaneously. One example is changing how we use electricity to lower our utility bills and help lower the level of gases holding onto heat in our atmosphere.
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