Alex Trelinski
A RECORD number of people died last year in the Valencian Community from extreme temperatures.
Madrid’s Carlos III Health Institute says 516 people passed away in 2024 from causes that were connected to either high or low temperatures- 42% more than in 2023.
Last winter saw 205 people die due to the cold, while 268 perished in the summer- almost the same total as in the whole of 2021.
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The average Valencian temperature in 2024 was 1.4C above average.
The Institute reports that as of February 6, 138 people have died so far this year due to the winter cold.
It began producing reports known as MoMo about cold and heat-related deaths in 2004, after the previous summer saw 70,000 people die because of the hot weather- 45,000 in August alone.
The excess mortality was especially prevalent in nursing homes which had not been adapted over two decades ago to deal with high temperatures.
Climatology head at state forecaster Aemet in Valencia, Jose Angel Nuñez, said that extreme temperature warnings are important.
“Alerts make sense because they can help people with previous pathologies that can could be affected,” he observed.
“In the face of climate change we can do two things like mitigating its effects like cutting greenhouse gas emissions as the rise in very hot days is down to human activity and changes to the atmosphere.”
Nuñez added that adaptation has become more prevalent and noted that air conditioning units have spread across Europe and Spain to counter the effects of extreme heat.
