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Australia is being urged to follow the lead of Seville and name its heatwaves.Credit:AP

In Seville,one of Europe’s hottest cities,an initiative to combat the rising toll of sweltering weather began in 2022 with heatwave Zoe,when the temperature exceeded 43 degrees.

Policy expert Rob McLeod,of consultancy firm Renew,said naming heatwaves should be part of an Australian strategy to raise awareness of health risks from extreme heat.

“Heatwaves have killed more people in Australia than any other natural disaster since 1900,and without sustained and ambitious policies to improve our resilience to extreme heat,the challenge will get even harder,” McLeod said.

“In Spain,improved public understanding of the dangers of heatwaves,coupled with a national heatwave plan,has helped save lives.”

Following Zoe,Seville started naming its heatwaves in reverse alphabetical order:Yago,Xenia,Wenceslao and Vera.

Seville also classifies heatwaves depending on their severity,ranging from low to very high risk,in a similar system to Australian bushfire danger ratings.

Last year was particularly punishing for Seville,as its August average maximum rose past 38 degrees,and its three heat waves sent temperatures soaring into the 40s. At least103 people died due to excess heat in the 12 months to August 2 in the province,according to data from a government-linked health institute.

The Bureau of Meteorology defines a heatwave as three or more days in a row when both daytime and nighttime temperatures are unusually high.

There is no universal threshold,with heatwaves instead declared on a local basis compared to the prevailing climate,but the bureau says the number of extreme heat events will continue to rise each year as the climate heats up.

McLeod travelled to Seville under a scholarship awarded by Energy Consumers Australia.

When a heatwave is approaching,Seville encourages its residents to minimise time spent outdoors and to seek shelter in cool public spaces,like libraries and shopping centres.

McLeod said Australia could name heatwaves to promote greater public awareness of such measures.

“Australia should adopt a system of naming heatwaves. Public communication and awareness of heatwave risk has been a critical element of Spain’s response,” his report said.

The report said local,state and federal governments should urgently promote awareness programs to reduce the health impacts of heatwaves – particularly in urban heat islands,which are most common in the outer suburbs of Australia’s major cities.

Urban heat islands form in areas that trap high temperatures more than the natural environment,with low tree cover and large areas of concrete.

2023 was confirmed as the hottest year on record,with the average temperature 1.48 degrees above the long-term average before industrialisation and the greenhouse effect,according to the EU’s climate service.

Starting in June,each month until December 2023 was the hottest on record when measured globally.

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