Another thing to add to the fright list - a killer summer for Britain!

May 11 2005

Because the Met Office in London are predicting that average British temperatures in July and August this year could be unusually high, with potentially devastating consequences, the British Government has acted to combat a disaster that they feel could threaten thousands of lives - a hot summer.

Yesterday the Department of Health published an information leaflet, called Heatwave, telling Britons how to protect themselves from the heat.

Sir Liam Donaldson, the Chief Medical Officer, says the leaflet is designed to provide the public with commonsense precautions that will help people to enjoy the weather while protecting themselves from the dangerous, and potentially fatal, effects of these temperatures.

The move is part of a revised government “heatwave plan” drawn up from lessons learnt from 2003, when a record for the highest temperature measured in Britain, 38.5C, was set in Kent.

A documentary drama on BBC television, also called Heatwave, recently imagined the effects of a devastating heatwave where the temperatures tops 38C (100F) for six days in a row, and it would not have put minds at rest.

In the graphic drama, the transport system grinds to a halt, hospitals overflow and large parts of the countryside catch fire.

In August 2003, high temperatures killed about 27,000 across Europe, and 2,000 deaths in England,most of them elderly, were possibly caused by the heat.

The plan will require GPs to monitor heat-related illnesses and this should enable allow the NHS and other public bodies to swing into action as the weather hots up.

Older people are at particular at risk and Paul Cann, the director of policy at Help the Aged, says a significant lack of preparedness in 2003 caused a major social, medical and political crisis. He would like the Government to invest in research to ensure these plans would actually work in such an emergency.

The leaflet advises that Brits should adopt the following advice, plan your day in a way allowing you to stay out of the heat. Avoid going out between 11am and 3pm. Take cool showers or baths several times a day. Eat cold food - salads and fruit - which contain water. Take plenty of water if you will be outside for a while, and importantly, check on older relatives or neighbours every day.

If all else fails, take some hints from Aussies and 'get in a slab of coldies' !!!