Heatwave Killer

The hottest day in Oxford was the 19th July 2022 when the maximum temperature of 38.1°C was recorded. Temperatures have soared past 30 degrees again. This current stifling heatwave follows on from an unusually wet & stormy Spring.

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/learn-about/past-uk-weather-events

In my youth I loved the sun & would spend hours trying to get a tan in blazing heat in places like Greece & Turkey. I'm lucky not to have had a problem with Melanoma. 

Now I literally cannot stand the heat. I hide away in my North facing front room & remain as still as possible. Any exertion causes me to be very uncomfortable, overheating & becoming breathless. It isn't my pacemaker that is unable to cope, it's me. I slow down, struggle to exercise, sleep, eat and easily become dehydrated. I have complete heart block / heart failure & other co morbid health conditions, which all deteriorate too. I become exhausted & need more energy which means my pacemaker needs to work  harder to keep me going.

But I am so fortunate. I live in a country with a good health service, I have a personal alarm & can summon help if I'm in trouble. There are good hospitals in Oxford. I have access to reliable information & know what to do & what not to do. My house is comfortable. I have a daughter & her family who live nearby. I can cope.

So many people can't. They really struggle. 2022 saw the highest number of recorded heatwave deaths over the last seven years in England, at 2,985, which followed the second highest in 2020, at 2,556 heatwave deaths, and 2023, which saw 2,295 heatwave deaths. These are excess death figures. The stress of a hot day can increase the chance of dying from a heart attack, other heart conditions, or weirdly, respiratory diseases such as pneumonia. The human body can't tolerate its temperature reaching 43 degrees C (about 109.4 degrees F). Anyone who reaches that core temperature — 99.9% would die. Heat also kills in more subtle ways — by worsening pre-existing issues, like cardiovascular or renal disease.

Extreme heat should be taken seriously. Climate change should be taken seriously. It isn't just people who are suffering. All wildlife is affected by extreme temperatures too. Intricate food chains are disrupted as hot weather also affects insect populations and dries up the soil. Heatwaves play havoc with already-declining insect numbers. Mammals become dehydrated.Trees prematurely drop their leaves. Warmer water affects amphibians & ponds dry out. 

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/research/climate/maps-and-data/about/state-of-climate  

Time is running out. The scientific evidence is plentiful & verified. We need to make difficult choices & accept changes to our lives that will impact everybody. If we don't this will only get worse.