It's been dubbed a 'silent killer' by authorities, which has claimed the lives of more Australians than any other natural disaster. This summer, emergency services are warning communities not to underestimate the deadly risk of heat waves and to prepare for the extreme weather event to occur more frequently in the future.
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00Chris Burns is stocking up for the sweltering months ahead.
00:06The CEO of a homeless support organisation in Adelaide says when heatwaves strike, his
00:13centre becomes a refuge for the city's rough sleepers.
00:17We anticipate we will hit near the limits of our capacity over summer.
00:21The rising cost of living and housing shortages has seen demand for support increase 30% over
00:27the past year, meaning more Australians are struggling to keep themselves cool during
00:32extreme weather.
00:34Rather than pay the power to have their home air-conditioned, they'll come to us.
00:37But also if they come to us, they save on groceries because they get to have a meal.
00:42The Bureau of Meteorology has forecast warmer-than-average day and night temperatures across the country
00:48this summer.
00:50Parts of Queensland, the Northern Territory, Western Australia and New South Wales have
00:54already experienced heatwaves, a trend which experts say will likely continue into the
01:00future.
01:01We would expect summers to be warmer-than-average more often than not, including being in those
01:09record summers.
01:10With these warmer temperatures, we would expect there to be longer and more frequent heatwaves.
01:16A new report from the Australia Institute has found South Australia is the second most
01:21vulnerable state or territory to the effects of extreme heat behind the Northern Territory.
01:28Port Pirie, Waiyala and Port Augusta are the highest risk areas, with more residents grappling
01:34with poverty, age and long-term illness.
01:37While the report found vulnerable Australians are most at risk to the effects of extreme
01:42heat, the state's emergency services are warning young people in particular not to downplay
01:48and ignore the signs of physical stress.
01:51We all know that it's really hard to sleep if it's really hot at night and that in turn
01:57means that we're tired, we're perhaps a little bit less inclined to pay attention to what
02:02we're doing and so accidents can happen.
02:05On alert for a summer of extremes.