Climate change

After the COVID-19 pandemic, the horror of climate change is gripping the whole world. A heatwave engulfing Europe has intensified, boiling fields and damaging airport runways and train tracks (“Britain boils in record temperature of 40°C,” July 20, Gulf Today website).

The Met Office said the provisional record, which still needs to be confirmed, was recorded at 12.50 pm (1150 GMT) at London’s Heathrow Airport, surpassing the previous record of 38.7°C recorded in 2019. Train routes were cancelled, normally busy city centres appeared quiet and zoos struggled to keep their animals cool.

Every year Western countries are experiencing a scorching heatwave increase as Britain recorded its highest ever temperature of 40˚C on Tuesday.

Last year’s recorded temperature was 39.1˚C in the United Kingdom.  Britain, which strugglea to maintain key transport services in extreme heat or the snow, has been put on a state of national emergency over the unprecedented temperatures.

According to reports, at Farnborough, the world’s joint-biggest air show, executives sheltered from the sun while in one hall without air conditioning some attendees sprayed each other with mist. In shops, ice creams and cold drinks were selling out while fans, hoses and air conditioning units were in demand.

Climate change has started showing its true colours to the world. It’s high time we make honest efforts to counter the disastrous global warming.

Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Nothing is impossible to achieve. To deal with climate change disasters is the need of the hour. If we don’t take global warming as a serious threat, it will have serious consequences for the whole world. It’s time to act unitedly and show the seriousness with which we are ready to fight the biggest threat to the world as we fought against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Shamshuddin,
By email