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South Asian countries Myanmar, Philippines, and India witness extreme heat conditions with record-breaking temperatures
Millions of people continue to suffer across South and Southeast Asia due to the unusually hot weather, including those in Myanmar, the Philippines, and India.
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Millions of people across South Asia continue to swelter through exceptionally hot weather
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The heat has hit much of South Asia with record temperatures over 40 degree celsius
With a heatwave that has surpassed temperature records from Myanmar to the Philippines, large portions of Asia are under extreme heat. The extreme weather has prompted governments to issue warnings about the high temperatures and pushed schools in the Philippines and Bangladesh to cancel classes in person this week.
As the heat index in Bangkok surpassed 52 degrees Celsius on Thursday, Thailand released more warnings. Heatstroke has reportedly killed at least thirty people, according to the Thai authorities.
Which countries are affected by the extreme heat?
Much of South and Southeast Asia has been scorching, with recent days seeing record highs in Chauk, Myanmar, and Manila, the capital of the Philippines. While authorities in Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Cambodia, and Vietnam all forecast temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius, the Thai government has issued warnings about severe conditions.
India is looking into whether the heat has impacted voter turnout in the country's elections. The effects have even extended to northern Japan: in April, Sapporo recorded its earliest-ever temperatures of over 25 degrees Celsius.
What has caused such extreme heat conditions?
The heat index calculates the relative temperature while accounting for humidity. Although it is often hot in the months before the monsoon, or rainy season, in the region, many countries will have far above-average temperatures in 2024. Extensive scientific research has found that heatwaves are becoming longer, more frequent, and more intense due to climate change.
According to UN estimates released this week, Asia has been the most vulnerable to weather-related disasters in 2023, with storms and floods accounting for the majority of fatalities and financial damage.
Asia is also warming more quickly than the rest of the world, according to the United Nations organization World Meteorological Organization. Other factors are also causing this condition such as the urban heat island effect, which occurs when steel, concrete, and glass buildings absorb heat instead of reflecting it, and deforestation, which decreases shade and increases dry surface area.
Children and older people are more likely to suffer from the extreme conditions
Individuals who are older, disabled, or have pre-existing medical disorders are more susceptible to overheating. People frequently work in environments without proper heat protection or lack access to cooling options at home. This month, the UN agency for children, Unicef, issued a warning that heatwaves could endanger 243 million children in East Asia and the Pacific.
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