Climate change blamed for 52 deaths across Wolverhampton, Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Telford. Here's the details
Dozens of people across the West Midlands have died as a result of climate change, say experts.
A new study by the world-renowned Imperial College London found that 52 people died this year as a result of hotter-than-normal temperatures.
Dudley saw a total of 23 estimated heat-related deaths over the summer, with 14 caused by climate change. Wolverhampton also saw 14 deaths.
Walsall experienced a total of 17 heat-related deaths, with 11 of those caused by climate change.
Sandwell saw 16 deaths, with 10 attributed to rising temperatures, while Telford and Wrekin saw five heat deaths - three caused by climate change.
Sam Fraser-Baxter, of the college's Grantham Institute, said the figures showed how serious the problem was becoming.
"This means in a world that hadn’t been heated by the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation, there would have been 52 fewer heat-related deaths this summer in these five areas," he said.
Birmingham experienced 54 heat-related deaths over the summer, he said.
The UK saw its hottest summer on record this year, with experts saying extreme heat incidents were made more likely and intense by human-induced global warming.
The study used modelling, historical mortality records and peer-reviewed methods to provide early estimates of fatalities this summer.
The team found climate change, caused primarily by the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation, increased temperatures by an average of 2.2 deg C, but by as much as 3.6 deg C between June and August.
The heat was responsible for 68 per cent of the 24,400 total heat deaths in 854 European cities or areas over the three months, according to its analysis.
This amounts to an additional 16,500 lives lost, compared with what may have been seen during a summer not heated by human activities – including 835 deaths in Rome, 630 in Athens, 409 in Paris, and 387 in Madrid, it found.
For the UK, there were 315 deaths in London, 24 in Glasgow and Sheffield, 22 in Edinburgh.
The study found the elderly were most vulnerable during the hot months, with the 85 per cent of those who died being over 65, and 41 per cent being over 85.
It also found that just two or three degrees made a big impact on death rates when people were not familiar with the higher temperatures.
Clair Barnes, a researcher who worked on the project said: “It may not sound like much, but our study shows that shifts in summer heat of just a few degrees can be the difference between life and death for thousands of people.
“It is another reminder that climate change isn’t an issue we can just deal with at some point in the future.
“The longer it takes governments to shift away from fossil fuels and cut emissions, the deadlier summer heat will become – even with efforts to become more resilient to extreme temperatures.”
