Âé¶¹´«Ã½

Tag - heat-waves

 
 

HEAT WAVES

Firefighters work on a burning area near Loumpa, as wildfires hit West Attica, Greece, on Aug. 3.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 10, 2026
How the hard reality of climate change hit Europe¡¯s economy this summer
Record heat and droughts this summer have wreaked havoc in power production, shipping and public health systems.
A view of Gerola Bridge as the Po River's water level runs low amid high drought severity in Mezzana Bigli, Italy, on Aug. 6
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 10, 2026
Italy¡¯s record-low Po River forces farmers to weigh crop switch
The river¡¯s climate change-fueled violent swings between flood and drought is also forcing industries to compete for a resource they once took for granted.
People and birds find relief from the sun in Tokyo's Nakano Ward earlier this month. While experts agree that urban greening is crucial to mitigating the impact of climate change, trees are becoming even more scarce in Japanese cities.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Aug 9, 2026
As Âé¶¹´«Ã½ concrete jungles sizzle, urban forestry offers an all-natural fix
Increasing tree coverage in Japanese cities could have myriad benefits as the planet warms. But canopy coverage in Tokyo and beyond is headed in the wrong direction.
An inmate looks out the window of his prison cell as he tries to stay cool during a heat wave in France last month.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 7, 2026
Heat waves expose overcrowding crisis in Europe¡¯s aging prisons
Rising temperatures have led to rising tempers, with a lack of ways to cool down causing more fights among inmates and confrontations with staff.
Danube cruise ships moored in Bratislava, on Tuesday. The river level is too low to go back up to Vienna or down to Budapest, the authorities said.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 6, 2026
As the Danube hits record lows, every centimeter of river counts
With its water level at a record low, the shrunken Danube is disrupting trade and tourist cruises and making locals along its banks confront the impact of climate change.
A former eel fishing boat covered in mud sits at the banks of the river Rhine as the water levels fall near Neuss, Germany, on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 6, 2026
Low water levels on Germany¡¯s Rhine amid heat and drought threaten economic blow
Shallow water is imposing tighter limits on how much ship cargo can float down the river ¡ª sending prices up for riverboat freight and heaping pressure on the government to act.
A resident of Szentendre-Pismany, Hungary, fills a tank with drinking water on July 31. Due to drought and low levels of the Danube River, the small city has run out of potable water.
WORLD
Aug 6, 2026
Austria hits record temperature and Hungary curbs power use as Europe feels the heat
The world¡¯s fastest-warming continent, Europe has endured record-breaking heat and destructive wildfires this summer.
A man wipes his sweat away at a warehouse in Hikawa, Kumamoto Prefecture, on July 31, days after a powerful earthquake struck the region.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 5, 2026
Japanese firm¡¯s ¡®human refrigerator¡¯ offers relief from punishing summer heat
The Do Hiemon Box is an oversized stainless-steel refrigerator that looks big enough to fit a human being, because that¡¯s exactly what it¡¯s designed to do.
People shelter from the heat under umbrellas in Seoul on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Aug 5, 2026
Heat wave divides rich and poor of upmarket Seoul
In the affluent district of Gangnam, access to air conditioning now defines the line between the haves and the have-nots.
Tourists wearing traditional Hanbok dresses use a parasol to shield from the sun at the Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 3, 2026
Record heatwave spreads across Korean Peninsula, prompting emergency response
Forecasters said that extreme heat, previously concentrated in South Korea¡¯s southeast, was spreading into the Seoul metropolitan area and other regions.
A homeless person near Shinjuku Station in Tokyo. Authorities have warned the public to avoid unnecessary outings and advised people to stay in air-conditioned spaces, but for people who are homeless this is often not an option.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Aug 3, 2026
For Âé¶¹´«Ã½ aging homeless population, brutal summers are dangerously inescapable
At a time when temperatures are regularly reaching dangerous levels, people without homes are increasingly vulnerable to heatstroke.
People play in a fountain to cool off in Yangsan, South Korea, on Friday. On Sunday, South Korea registered its highest temperature since records began more than a century ago, according to the state weather agency.
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 2, 2026
South Korea records its highest-ever temperature of 42.5 degrees Celsius
The southeastern city of Yangsan saw the temperature reach 42.5 C at 1:26 pm, the Korea Meteorological Administration said on its website.
A firefighting helicopter flies past smoke from a wildfire in the area of Porto Germeno, some 70 kilometers northwest of Athens, on Saturday.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 2, 2026
Wildfires spread across Greece as conditions worsen in France and Spain
Europe has been ravaged by wildfires this summer after a period of record-breaking heat and little rain, in conditions that scientists say have been exacerbated by climate change.
A French Civil Security Canadair CL-415 aircraft flies past flames burning a forest surrounding Cotignac, southeastern France on July 23.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jul 28, 2026
France and Spain race to curb wildfires before new heat wave arrives
Authorities have evacuated ?about 220,000 people in France, while in Spain around 100,000 have been told to seek shelter.
Portable air conditioners are selling well at a Bic Camera store in Tokyo.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 27, 2026
Portable air conditioner sales surge in Japan amid intense heat
Relatively low prices and the fact that such portable units do not require installation work make them popular.
Firefighters work as flames burn during a wildfire at Ares, Grionde, among worsening drought conditions following a heat wave and water shortages across much of France, on Saturday.
ENVIRONMENT
Jul 26, 2026
¡®Difficult night¡¯ as France and Spain fires intensify again
The fires in Spain and France advanced quickly because of tinderbox conditions worsened by successive heat waves the two countries have experienced since May.
People cross a street in Nagoya on Saturday as temperatures continued to soar across parts of Japan.
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2026
Extreme heat grips Japan for a record fifth straight day
This was the longest streak in which temperatures of 40 degrees Celsius or higher had been observed since comparative records began being kept in 2011.
The summer heat hits Ginza, Tokyo, on Thursday. According to the Tokyo Fire Department, 453 people were transported to hospitals due to heatstroke on Wednesday alone.
JAPAN
Jul 23, 2026
As Japan bakes, over 10,000 rushed to hospital for heatstroke in a week
Some 10,857 people were transported by ambulance from July 13 through July 19, more than double the same period last year.
A combine harvester reaps a field of wheat early in the season due to France's current and late June heat wave in Marly-lez-Valenciennes, northern France, on July 7.
WORLD
Jul 23, 2026
Heat and war deal Europe¡¯s grain harvest biggest blow in decades
High temperatures are expected to cut the region¡¯s corn crop to the smallest in 19 years, as the Middle East conflict conflict has pushed up fuel and fertilizer costs.
A rickshaw puller drinks a bottle of barley tea in Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture.
BUSINESS
Jul 22, 2026
Âé¶¹´«Ã½ electricity price hits highest in over three years on triple blow
With a triple whammy of blistering heat, yen weakness and escalating fuel costs, the nationwide day-ahead spot price surged to ?24.78 a kilowatt-hour on Wednesday.

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Âé¶¹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness

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