When things heat up

In the summer of 2015, a long-lasting heatwave, about which the public seemed to have been given very few warnings, claimed the lives of thousands of people. A compounding factor exacerbating the situation was that the heatwave occurred during Ramazan and frequent, hours-long power outages didn’t help matters either. The summer of 2016, we are warned, will be similar. Combined with the advent of global warming and after many warnings given at the 2015 Climate Change Conference in Paris, the Sindh government, health authorities and the public at large must remain prepared this time around to avoid the same kind of impact on human life that occurred last year.

In our assessment, while awareness about heatwave exhaustion might be more prevalent, information about what to do and how to prevent the condition still lacks. While organisations like the Edhi Foundation have begun preparations, the government is yet to be seen catapulting into high-powered action. The health department has been silent on the matter so far. Some Karachi hospitals have been equipped with additional air conditioners but this points to an obvious concern: persons at the hospital have already been victim to heat exhaustion. We need preventive measures before symptoms are exhibited, like the easy availability of water and fitting public offices, where large crowds gather, with air conditioners. In addition, awareness campaigns by the media and governmental departments should be a must and should aim at informing people about identifying the symptoms of a heat stroke and what should be done immediately afterwards. Extreme weather patterns are becoming routine. Now is the time to install public water fountains, especially in parks, plant more trees to absorb some of the effects of rising temperatures due to climate change and plan to limit power outages during the summer months. In addition, people involved in hard labour must be exempted from work when the temperatures become too extreme. Preparation and prevention are key to mitigating loss of human life due to heatstroke. Tomorrow, it will be too late to prepare.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 1^st, 2016.

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