Extreme heat cancels climate change event on adapting to extreme heat
Extreme heat in London has led to the cancellation of a climate event on extreme heat.
The event, planned to take place at Shaw Library at the London School of Economics on Wednesday as part of Climate Action Week, was canceled after the Met Office issued a red weather warning for Greater London.
The area from London to Swansea and Somerset to Birmingham will now be under red alert from 9am on Wednesday and 9pm on Thursday.
event titled Extreme Heat: Improving governance and strengthening action worldwide Created by the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment.
The Zurich Climate Resilience Alliance wrote: “Like most buildings in London, the event venue has no cooling mechanism and we cannot risk the health of speakers or guests by subjecting everyone to very uncomfortable indoor conditions as well as hot journeys to the venue.” in a post on social media on Tuesday.
“We apologize to anyone who was planning to attend the event. Thank you for your understanding and if you are in London please stay safe.”
This week the Met Office issued a rare red weather warning for Wednesday and Thursday due to extreme heat and humidity.
This week’s record-breaking heatwave could see temperatures exceed 37°C in the shade and could even rise to 38°C to 40°C in some parts of England and Wales, the weather forecaster said.
The Met Office added that the intensity of this week’s hot conditions has been very rare in the UK so far, adding that high humidity is expected along with very hot and humid nights that will make it difficult for people to recover overnight.
“The magnitude of future impacts of extreme heat will depend largely on global mitigation efforts, local heat management and response plans,” the Zurich Climate Alliance wrote.
“Cities like London have a unique potential to adapt to changing heat risks through effective risk management at multiple levels, linking policies and incentives, and strengthening society’s adaptive capacity.”
A Practical Action spokesperson said: Independent: “If the UK is struggling to cope, then it’s really important that we take climate change seriously and learn from what’s going on around the world.”
A yellow temperature alert is in effect for the East Midlands, East of England, London and the South East, South West, Wales and West Midlands on Tuesday.
The UK Health Safety Agency (UKHSA) has warned that this will lead to an increase in deaths, particularly among those aged 65 and over or with underlying health conditions, and will affect people’s ability to work.
