Exceptionally hot weather in May and June was responsible for the heat-related deaths of at least 2,700 people in England and Wales, according to British research out Monday. File photo by Facundo Arrizabalaga/EPA-EFE
July 13 (UPI) -- Exceptionally hot weather in May and June was responsible for the heat-related deaths of at least 2,700 people in England and Wales, according to British research out Monday that found that human-caused climate change was a significant factor.
Temperature records for both months fell during heat waves May 21-29 and June 18-28, with the bulk of the fatalities -- 2,200 -- in June when the temperature rose to as high as 99.9 degrees Fahrenheit compared with average daytime highs of 68 degrees Fahrenheit, the Met Office said in a news release.
Researchers from Imperial College London, the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and the Met Office modeled excess deaths -- those over and above normal levels -- during both heat waves using historical mortality records and established peer-reviewed methods.
Notably, almost 6 in 10 of fatalities during the May heat wave were attributed to additional heat contributed by human-caused climate change, compared with a little less than 4 in 10 during the heat wave in June, which was hotter and lasted longer.
