Several people died: Deadly “heat dome” over Canada

In parts of Canada, temperatures have risen to almost 50 degrees. There have been dozens of deaths – and the first forest fires have already broken out. The cause of the heat wave is a rare phenomenon.

The fatal heat hits the greater Vancouver area in particular. Any help came too late for Tom Harrie’s neighbor, he told Canadian television: “I ran into her house. She wasn’t breathing. She no longer had a pulse.”

Dozens of people have died since the weekend because they could no longer bear the oppressive warmth, police say. Particularly affected: older people with previous illnesses. Clearly there is a connection with the temperatures. “I can’t remember having seen anything like this before,” says a woman in the western Canadian province. In the village of Lytton it was partly 49.5 degrees.

Prime Minister John Horgan sounds the alarm: “We are in the middle of the hottest week British Columbia has ever seen.” That has disastrous consequences. In a press conference, Horgan called for people to look after other people, keep cold compresses in the refrigerator, and stay in the coolest part of the house. “We can only get through this extreme time if we stick together and take care of those who are at risk,” he said.

Fear of forest fires

The emergency hotline does not stand still. The emergency vehicles are no longer coming, says Tom Clifford of the British Columbia Ambulance Association. It takes up to two hours for emergency calls. “If it is not so urgent, people even have to wait up to 15 hours for help.”

Air conditioners and fans are sold out in the region. Those who do not have a cooled home sometimes seek protection from the heat in underground garages or in air-conditioned cars. But that too can be dangerous. The first forest fires are raging in the region. You could spread quickly, says Vancouver fire department chief Karen Fry: “With this constant extreme heat, the danger is particularly great. We have the most emergency calls we have ever experienced.”

“Heat dome” holds hot air in place

A phenomenon is to blame for the heat wave that extends to the north of the USA: a so-called heat dome. The high pressure in the atmosphere keeps the hot air in the region. This happens once every few thousand years on average, says Canadian climate expert David Philips: “Climate change didn’t create the heat dome. But it makes it worse. I think that’s the human component.”

And it will repeat itself, warn other climate researchers. Canada must be prepared for the fact that it will get hotter and hotter in the future.