Why are our homes and cities all so hot?
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This is The Guardian.
Why can't the UK cope with extreme heat?
Today, why can't the UK cope when it gets hot, hot, hot?
If you're listening outside the UK, you might be forgiven the eye roll. The Brits. Obsessing over the weather? Tell us something new. But this week's heatwave across Britain and much of Europe doesn't feel like an ordinary event. Take it from Fiona Harvey, the Guardian's environment editor.
You know, we get heatwaves in this country, but they're usually in July or August. We're still only in May. And just a few weeks ago, people had their heating on. People were running around in jumpers and long trousers and so on, you know.
At its hottest, the country saw a record-breaking 35 degrees. Sweaty, maybe feeling unwell, unable to sleep.
We've been talking about these tropical nights, which is astonishing for the UK.
In short, I am allowed to be cranky because it's very, very hot. Absolutely. I'm not getting enough sleep. We should all be cranky.
We've become a nation of toddlers.
And this isn't just about the fact that we're not acclimatized to tropical nights. It's our entire infrastructure. Homes, schools, hospitals, office blocks, most of which weren't built for the climate we now have.
We've seen the heat records for May not just surpassed, but really shattered. You know, normally heat records are surpassed by, you know, a fraction of a degree, something like that. But this time we're talking about more like two degrees nearly. And that's a lot.
From The Guardian, I'm Nosheen Iqbal, today in Focus. If this is the new normal, how do we adapt? Fiona, it is hot. It was much hotter earlier this week, but it is still very warm today. You are The Guardian's environment editor, our cool, calm voice. Now, before I get to the big questions of climate change, how do you deal with a heatwave?
Well, I think it's important to try to take the basic measures first. If you're out, obviously wear sunscreen, wear loose clothes, you know, light clothes can help. I'm not doing that today, but, you know. The cottons. Do as I say, not as I do. But take those kind of obvious precautions. Wear a hat, you know, something to shield you.
Are you a baseball hat, a bucket hat? What kind of hat do you wear?
Bucket hats, you know, let's come over like it's the mid-90s again, you know, why not? Yeah, but whatever it is, just do whatever suits yourself. People talk about wetting a tea tile and putting it over their fan, keeping some ice on hand. Really important to stay hydrated, obviously. And if it gets really hot, there's no shame in having a nap at the hottest time. I'm glad you've said it. That's what people do in hot countries. They have a siesta, a nap at the hot time, and then they come out at night when it's cooler. The core thing here is that we in this country are not used to thinking of ourselves as living in a hot country. It always comes as a massive surprise to us. We need to get used to it and to say, OK, we need to adopt these habits, these traditions that people have evolved over millennia in other countries and that can help us.
According to a new report from the Climate Change Committee, the CCC, as you say, we can expect this in the UK and in Europe to become our new normal. Fiona, can you tell me about the report's other key findings?
Well, this was a massive report and it's been several years in the making. And it's a warning shot to the government, really. It's to say, look, none of the plans that have been brought forward for adapting the UK to the impacts of the climate crisis are adequate. They said very clearly none of the plans are fit for purpose. What are those plans at the moment? It's been more about telling people to expect higher temperatures than it's been about telling them, you know, what to do. And a lot of it has been about flooding because, you know, you forget about this in a heat wave, but one of the big impacts of the climate crisis is that we get wetter weather in shorter bursts. So a lot of what the UK has done to date has been about flood prevention, flood risk, building sea walls, concrete barriers around rivers.
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