BERLIN (AP) — More than 200,000 people across Europe died from heat-related causes over the last four years, and most of the fatalities were preventable, the World Health Organization’s Europe office said Thursday.More above-average temperatures could be on the books this summer, and they are more than an inconvenience: They can cause heat exhaustion and life-threatening heat stroke.“The impacts of climate change are a clear and present danger, and its most immediate and lethal manifestation is extreme heat,” said Dr. Hans Kluge, director of the WHO’s Europe office, in a statement. “Heatwaves are no longer freak weather anomalies. They are now a recurring crisis inflicting suffering, claiming lives and fracturing our health systems and infrastructure.”AdvertisementAdvertisementKluge’s office called for countries and institutions to implement heat plans that range from opening cooling centers to introducing breaks or flexible shifts that enable workers to stay out of the midday sun, the statement said.“Our goal is clear and our ambition is bold: zero heat-related deaths,” Kluge said.Also on Thursday, meteorologists announced that El Nino, nature’s chaotic climate agent, has formed in a warmed-up Pacific Ocean and is expected to grow to historic strength. Experts said the natural warming cycle would further heat a globe already warming from fossil fuel pollution and will likely turbocharge extreme weather across the planet.Here are some of …
