High temperatures, exacerbated by human-driven carbon emissions, were responsible for nearly 50,000 deaths in Europe last year, according to a study published on Monday.
The study, conducted by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health, estimated that 47,700 deaths were linked to heat during what was the world’s warmest year and Europe’s second-warmest year on record.
The report, published in the journal Nature Medicine, analyzed temperature and mortality data from 35 countries across Europe. It found that 2022 was particularly deadly, with more than 60,000 heat-related deaths, making it the deadliest year in the past decade.
The study emphasized that older individuals were most vulnerable, with southern European countries being the hardest hit by the extreme heat. More than half of the deaths occurred during two intense heatwaves in mid-July and August, a period during which Greece also faced devastating wildfires. Temperatures reached 44 degrees Celsius (111 degrees Fahrenheit) on July 18 in Sicily.
While the study estimated a total of 47,690 deaths, it acknowledged a 95 percent confidence interval, suggesting the mortality burden could range between 28,853 and 66,525.
However, the study also noted that the number of heat-related deaths would have been 80 percent higher if not for actions taken by European governments to adapt to hotter summers in the 21st century.
“Our findings underscore the significance of historical and ongoing adaptations in saving lives during recent summers,” the authors stated.
The report also stressed the urgency for more effective strategies to further reduce the mortality burden of increasingly hotter summers, calling for proactive measures to combat global warming.
Europe, where temperatures are rising faster than the global average, has seen a growing number of deadly heatwaves since the beginning of the century. Scientists warn that climate change is making extreme weather events like heatwaves more frequent, longer-lasting, and more intense.
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