Tag - heat

 
 

HEAT

A construction worker in Akasaka-Mitsuke, Tokyo, on Wednesday. High temperatures are projected to linger on past the summer.
JAPAN
Aug 23, 2024
High temperatures expected to continue in Japan through October
The warm fall will follow what has already been a particularly hot summer, with July’s average temperature coming in at a record high for the month.
A supermarket worker puts up a sign asking purchasers to buy only one bag per person, in Tokyo on July 25.
JAPAN
Aug 22, 2024
Why it's hard to find rice at Japan's supermarkets right now
In recent weeks, store shelves have often been barren, with many shops displaying signs asking purchasers to stick to one bag per person.
An ambulance is parked at the entrance of the emergency room of Saitama Hospital in Wako, Saitama Prefecture, on July 24.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Boiling Point
Aug 20, 2024
How Japan's health care system is gearing up for more heatstroke cases
Rising heatstroke cases are weighing on the nation’s health care system, which is already wrestling with the growing burden of a rapidly aging population.
The volunteer lifesavers of Nishihama Surf Lifesaving Club never know what's in store at the start of their day.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Aug 19, 2024
It's no simple day at the beach for Japan's volunteer lifesavers
Protecting beachgoers from drowning, heatstroke and possible tsunami, lifesavers are seeking formal recognition for what they do.
The parliament building in Tokyo. With concerns about summer heat rising and many elections taking place in summertime, it may not be tenable to conduct campaigns as in the past given health risks to candidates, their staff and voters.
JAPAN / Politics / Boiling Point
Aug 17, 2024
Hotter summers pose a threat to Japan's tradition of stump speeches
Balancing health concerns with legal restrictions as well as candidates' desire to be as publicly visible as possible, even in super hot weather, might be tricky.
Tourists at a water fountain at the Acropolis archaeological site during extreme hot weather conditions in Athens in July 2023.
BUSINESS
Aug 16, 2024
Extreme weather drives travelers to cooler destinations this summer
Cruise operators, hotel companies and airlines are adding trips and accommodations to meet rising demand for temperate destinations.
Yamazen has released a portable air conditioner with a solar panel.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 16, 2024
Japanese companies aim to help prevent nighttime heatstroke
To combat this summer's heat waves both day and night, companies are encouraging people to utilize products and services aimed at helping them avoid heatstroke while sleeping.
A train in Nimi, Okayama Prefecture, on West Japan Railway's Geibi Line in September 2023. The line is among those that have seen rail tracks warped by this summer's extreme heat.
JAPAN / Boiling Point
Aug 15, 2024
Japan’s searing summer heat is warping railway tracks more often
West Japan Railway, Kyushu Railway and Shikoku Railway have all been affected.
A Palestinian mourns those killed in Israeli strikes, amid Israel-Hamas conflict, at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 14, 2024
Extreme heat poses new challenge for aid agencies in Gaza
Aid trucks in Gaza often spend hours under the sun waiting for clearance due to Israeli restrictions.
A ward for heatstroke patients at a hospital in Chennai, India, in May. The country experienced a severe heat wave over the spring and summer, raising concerns about the long-term impact of climate change-induced extreme heat on human health.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 14, 2024
Climate change: A health emergency in the making
Global warming's impact on health is an increasingly urgent issue — just look at excess deaths caused by extreme heat. But are health care systems well-equipped enough?
When water temperatures are high, particularly when they rise to 33 degrees Celsius or above, the difference between water and body temperatures is smaller, preventing heat from escaping into the water and increasing the risk of heatstroke.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 13, 2024
Heatstroke a risk even in swimming pools, Japanese experts warn
Experts say the body's ability to regulate temperature is compromised, especially when the water temperature is high.
People rest outside Matadero cultural center during the fourth heatwave of the summer in Madrid on Sunday.
ENVIRONMENT
Aug 12, 2024
Experts are fighting over whether to give heat waves names
The arguments against naming heat waves aren’t so removed from the arguments in favor: Heat is complicated, and its threat level tricky to generalize.
Blistering heat is becoming a fixture of summer in Japan, but a few tweaks to your routine can make your outdoor runs bearable — if not enjoyable — until cooler temperatures return.
LIFE / Lifestyle / Boiling Point
Aug 10, 2024
Ice bandanas, convenience store breaks: Running under Japan’s summer sun
There are easily affordable ways to work some more cooling elements into your runs.
Visitors enter a haunted house at the Namjatown indoor theme park in Tokyo on July 30.
LIFE / Travel
Aug 7, 2024
Japanese beat the heat in 'liver-chilling' haunted houses
A visit to a haunted house is seen as a refreshing respite in Japan from the summer's heat and humidity.
Children use a mobile shower, provided by the local government, amid extreme heat in metro Manila on May 2.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 6, 2024
From the Philippines to Mali, countries fail to count deaths from extreme heat
A lack of reliable data is undermining efforts to mitigate the risk of extreme heat and provide better protection for the most vulnerable.
An ambulance dispatched in Tokyo on Friday. The Tokyo Fire Department issued an ambulance shortage alert 19 times last month, up from five a year before.
JAPAN
Aug 5, 2024
Heatstroke cases behind record number of ambulance dispatches in Tokyo
The 542,256 instances for the January to July period this year was the highest since the statistics began in 1936.
Temperatures are soaring across Japan, making getting to sleep at night a constant battle between your body and the right setting for your air conditioner to help you nod off.
LIFE / Lifestyle / Boiling Point
Aug 2, 2024
An ideal AC temperature for sleep? Science says yes ... and no.
Keeping your room at 26 degrees Celsius can help you sleep through summer’s steamy nights — but how long should you leave the AC on?
People cross a street in Tokyo's Harajuku district on Wednesday. In July, the deviation from the average temperature between 1991 and 2020 — a period when warming was already well underway — was 2.16 degrees Celsius.
JAPAN / Boiling Point
Aug 1, 2024
Japan experienced its hottest July on record
The number of “extremely hot days” — those where the highest temperature hits 35 C and above — was the largest figure for a July.
Takeshita street in Tokyo's Harajuku shopping district on Wednesday, when temperatures reached 35.6 degrees Celsius.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 1, 2024
New 'most severe' category added to Japan’s heatstroke guidelines
The move is meant to stress the need for urgent medical attention in severe cases as the number of heatstroke cases soars amid record-high temperatures.
The world needs a smaller, more focused Olympics to ensure sustainability and relevance amid changing global conditions.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 31, 2024
Olympics host cities don’t belong on a warming planet
The world needs a smaller, more focused Olympics to ensure sustainability and relevance amid changing global conditions.

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone.
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan