Global EditionASIA 中文双语Français
World
Home / World / Europe

WHO calls for urgent action as deaths from extreme heat surge in Europe

Xinhua | Updated: 2023-07-19 02:19
Share
Share - WeChat
A tourist cools himself off in Dubrovnik, Croatia, July 12, 2023. [Photo/Xinhua]

COPENHAGEN - With 60,000 deaths in Europe last year due to extreme heat, a top World Health Organization (WHO) official has stressed the "desperate and urgent need" to tackle the climate crisis.

The number of deaths from extreme heat "is set to rise year-on-year," the WHO's Regional Director for Europe Hans Kluge said on Tuesday.

Current "danger zones" include southern and eastern Europe, Kluge said, urging the public to "regularly check weather reports, follow local guidance, and inform yourself about weather-related health risks from reputable sources."

"Beyond adapting to our new reality this summer, we must look to the years and decades ahead," he said.

"There is a desperate and urgent need for regional and global action to effectively tackle the climate crisis, which poses an existential threat to the human race."

In the long run, Kluge believes that the adoption of the Budapest Declaration, which prioritizes urgent, wide-ranging action on health challenges related to climate change, environmental pollution, etc., in the WHO European Region earlier this month, will go a long way toward addressing "the worst impacts of climate change on our health and health systems."

In particular, Kluge believes the declaration will mobilize young people to get involved, "because they are truly engaged on the climate issues they are inheriting and often bursting with ideas and solutions."

"Action on climate change cannot be predicated on a particular government or political party; it truly needs to be a non-partisan issue championed by all sides of the political spectrum," Kluge said.

Most Viewed in 24 Hours
Top
BACK TO THE TOP
English
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

Registration Number: 130349
FOLLOW US