NEWS

NEWS Heat waves linked to higher death counts in many cities

by Charlie Smith

Hot weather can kill a lot of people. at was the conclusion in a 2020 study led by a UBC environmental epidemiologist, Kate Weinberger, who studies the links between climate change and human health.

She and four other researchers looked at 297 U.S. counties representing 61.9 percent of the American population in 2000. ey estimated that an average of 5,608 deaths each year from 1997 to 2006 could be attributed to heat.

“Our results suggest that the number of deaths related to heat in the United States is substantially larger than previously reported,” the researchers wrote in the journal Environmental Epidemiology.

Now it appears that researchers will have an opportunity to put Vancouver’s heat wave under similar scrutiny. According to Vancouver police, there have been more than 65 sudden deaths since the heat wave began on June 25.

“Vancouver has never experienced heat like this, and, sadly, dozens of people are dying because of it,” Sgt. Steve Addison said in a VPD news release.

Back in 2017, Environmental Health Perspectives published a study by four researchers who examined heat-related mortality risk in Vancouver. ey relied on maps of “urban heat islands” in the city where the humidex index exceeded 34.4 C.

From the Vital Statistics Agency database, they examined records of all deaths with an extremely hot day compared to a control day from 1998 to 2014. ey paid attention to neighbourhoods that tend to get hotter and where people tend to be poorer, such as the Downtown Eastside. e researchers concluded that the risk of death was higher in neighbourhoods lacking trees and with more concrete, and where there were higher numbers of people who were unemployed or retired. ese “pockets of risk” were not only in

The Downtown Eastside is a local hot spot due to a lack of tree cover. Photo by Travis Lupick. the Downtown Eastside but also in parts of Abbotsford, Surrey, New Westminster, and other areas. Sarah Henderson, one of the authors and a UBC School of Population associate professor pointed out in a 2017 UBC news release that in one week in 2009, “110 people died simply because it was hot outside”.

In the recent heat wave, temperatures have shot up well above 34.4 C in Vancouver, exceeding those recorded in 2009.

“Although these temperatures are not hot by international standards, the 40% increase in mortality indicated that greater Vancouver was adversely a ected by ambient temperatures that were high relative to seasonal norms,” Henderson and the other researchers wrote, citing a 2012 paper.

Meanwhile, the Museum of Vancouver’s current exhibit, at Which Sustains Us, features a heat-island map of the city, which shows that two of the hottest areas are in the Downtown Eastside and along the Fraser River, where the tree canopy was removed many years ago.

“ e hottest parts of the city are places where the death rate goes up in the summer because it’s so hot,” curator Sharon Fortney told the Straight in an interview. g

July 1-8 / 2021

8 COVER

Butoh artist Billy Marchenski decided to look at the world through Lucifer’s eyes in his new show, light-bearer, which is premiering at Dancing on the Edge. By Charlie Smith Cover photo by Israel Seoane

6 SPORTS

Who knew that roller skating would take off around Metro Vancouver after the World Health Organization described COVID-19 as a pandemic? By Breanne Doyle

13 JAZZ FESTIVAL

Dalannah Gail Bowen has been a fixture on the local blues scene for nearly 40 years. She brings her tribute to Billie Holiday to the jazz fest. By Steve Newton

e Start Here 9 ARTS 19 CLASSIFIEDS 7 FOOD 14 CONFESSIONS 16 MOVIES 15 MUSIC 2 NEWS 4 REAL ESTATE 18 SAVAGE LOVE 12 VISUAL ARTS 7 WINE

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