Heat wave in Southeast Asia closes schools, triggers health alerts
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[April 29, 2024]
By Neil Jerome Morales
MANILA (Reuters) -The Philippines has closed schools down and warned of
overloading on its power grid, as authorities across Southeast Asia
issued a series of health alerts for a crushing and deadly heat wave.
The Philippines' country's education ministry cancelled in-person
classes at public schools for two days on Sunday.
"We already have reports of high blood pressure and dizziness, and
fainting for pupils and teachers in the past days," Benjo Basas,
chairperson of Teachers' Dignity Coalition, a group of educators, told
DWPM radio station.
Temperatures in the Philippines are forecast to reach 37 degree Celsius
(98.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in the next three days, with many classrooms
crowded and without air conditioning.
The country's weather agency said the heat index - the actual
temperature felt by the body to include relative humidity - is expected
to remain at a record 45 degrees Celsius (113° Fahrenheit), in the range
which it classes as "dangerous" as conditions can trigger heat stroke
from prolonged exposure.
The heat wave is also putting pressure on power supplies on the main
island of Luzon, which accounts for three-quarters of economic output,
with reserves thinning after 13 power plants had shut down earlier this
month, the Philippines' grid operator said in a statement.
In Thailand, temperatures are forecast to surpass 40 degrees in Bangkok
and the country's central and northern regions with the meteorological
agency advising people to avoid being outdoors for extended periods.
Temperatures soared to 44.2 degrees Celsius in the northern city of
Lampang on April 22, with the meteorological department saying on Monday
it expects the extreme heat will continue this week.
In the past month, 30 people have died from heat stroke, data from
Thailand's health ministry showed.
DEHDRATION, HEAT SHOCK
People are seeking respite from the heat in air-conditioned shopping
malls in Vietnam's business hub Ho Chi Minh City, state media reported,
with the country's national weather agency warning of risks of forest
fires, dehydration, and heat shock.
Maximum temperatures measured in several parts of northern and central
Vietnam ranged from 40.2 and 44.0 degree Celsius the agency said on
Sunday, adding that temperatures won't subside until Wednesday.
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A student answers her learning module following the suspension of
in-person classes, at her family's empty store, in Manila,
Philippines, April 26, 2024. REUTERS/Lisa Marie David
Vietnam's state electricity company has also urged consumers to
refrain from overworking their air conditioning units, warning that
electricity consumption has reached record highs in the recent days.
Malaysia meteorological department issued hot weather warnings on
Sunday for 16 areas that have recorded temperatures between 35 and
40 degrees (95 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit) for three consecutive
days.
A total of 45 cases of heat-related illnesses have been reported in
the country as of April 13, the health ministry said, without
specifying when it began tracking the cases. Two deaths due to heat
stroke have been reported, the ministry said in a statement.
In the neighbouring city state of Singapore, the meteorological
service said the country's temperatures could soar higher in 2024
than last year, which was Singapore's fourth-warmest year since
records began in 1929.
Singapore's hottest day recorded was May 13 last year when the
highest daily maximum temperature hit 37 degrees Celsius.
Since last month some schools have relaxed rules on uniforms to
allow students to wear more comfortable physical education attire
amid the persistent heat.
Meanwhile, warmer temperatures in Southeast Asia's most populated
nation of Indonesia are driving a surge in cases of dengue fever, a
mosquito-borne infection, with cases more than doubling to 35,000
from 15,000 a year earlier, the health ministry has said.
The El Nino weather pattern has prolonged the dry season and hotter
temperatures have accelerated the mosquito lifecycle, Indonesian
health ministry spokesperson Siti Nadia Tarmizi told state news
agency, Antara.
(Reporting by Neil Jerome Morales in Manila; Panarat Thepgumpanat in
Bangkok, Khanh Vu in Hanoi, Xinghui Kok in Singapore, Danial Azhar
in Malaysia and Kate Lamb in Jakarta; Editing by John Mair and Raju
Gopalakrishnan)
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