Middle East struggles under hellish heat waves

17/08/2016
Middle East region is now facing the worst heat waves ever. Experts have warned that high temperature can lead to such extent that human survival would become impossible. They have also advised to control greenhouse gas emission.
In past few months, temperature was observed to be soaring to 54 degree centigrade in Kuwait and Iraq. On the other hand, Iran as well as UAE has experienced temperature around 50 degree centigrade.
26-year-old university student from Basra, Iraq, Zainab Guman said that in Iraq it was like walking through fire. “It’s like everything on your body — your skin, your eyes, your nose — starts to burn,” she said.
Heat waves can prove to be fatal for the Middle East region. Wealthier families in Middle East can afford air conditioning machines, but survival has become difficult for the poor and middle class people.
Dr. Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick, a research fellow at UNSW’s Climate Change Research Centre, said that many people don’t seem to realize that heat waves have killed more people than any other natural disaster, so much so that it’s been dubbed the “silent killer”. She said that, while the Middle East is no stranger to heat waves historically, the key fact here is that they’re getting increasingly more frequent.
Due to heat wave, agriculture sector has undergone the most challenging situations. Most of the Middle East countries, including Iraq, have suffered from extreme loss in agricultural sector. Farmer suicides have been noted in high numbers in India and Pakistan recently due to heat wave and drought.
Public transportation has also slowed down in Iraq, and various other Middle East countries. More such disasters are to follow, if human beings are not careful at all protecting the nature.
Last Update:: 17/08/2016
Iraq Directory