Soaring temperatures lead to more deaths each year than natural disasters, so emergency services must prepare people for the hottest conditions since Black Summer.
Heat waves are a silent killer that lead to more deaths each year than natural disasters and Australians need to be prepared for them, Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt has said ahead of the country’s hottest and driest weather since Black Summer.
“And while there’s been a lot of focus on bushfires, and understandably so, one of the other risks that we face this year is heat waves, which of course are the silent killer of Australians,” he said. “But we’re also working with local governments around public libraries, swimming pools, public facilities that people can use to get relief in those heatwave conditions.”Brianna Casey, chief executive officer of Foodbank, said she was particularly concerned about the impact on cash-strapped clients who “just don’t have the resilience that we need right now”.
“But there is a national framework that makes sure there’s consistency and warning. We’re also working with the energy sector and with health sectors to make sure that they are acutely aware of the potential impacts of heat,” he said. The Bureau of Meteorology’s heatwave warning service provides alerts via its mobile app four days in advance. The alert provides a warning as well as health messages tailored to particular areas or at-risk communities.“It’s a very powerful way of giving the community insight around a around a heatwave coming,” the bureau’s chief executive Andrew Johnson said, noting messages would also be issued on social media.
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Australians warned about the risk of heatwaves for upcoming summerEmergency Management Minister Murray Watt has warned Australians about the risk of heatwaves and heat-related illnesses ahead of the upcoming summer. “I actually think in terms of the most serious threats … we may be facing multiple different fires in different parts of the country as well as cyclones and floods in the north of the country,” he told Sky News Australia. Mr Watt says one of the risks associated with high temperatures and bushfires is the potential for heatwaves to cause heat-related illnesses. “One of the features that hasn’t been discussed so much is the risk of heatwaves this year,” he said. “Heatwaves are a silent killer for people.”
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