A recent deadly heatwave in the Sahel and West Africa, with temperatures soaring above 45°C, has been attributed to human-caused climate change.
An international team of leading climate scientists from the World Weather Attribution group conducted a rapid analysis to reach this conclusion.
The extreme heatwave, which occurred in late March and early April, led to record-breaking temperatures, with Mali hitting a scorching 48.5°C on April 3. The impact of the heatwave was especially felt in Bamako, where the Gabriel-Toure Hospital reported a surge in deaths, with 102 fatalities in the first four days of April. Many of the deceased were over 60 years old, and the hospital indicated that heat likely played a role in these deaths.
While the exact number of heat-related deaths remains unknown due to a lack of data in the affected countries, it is estimated that hundreds, or possibly thousands, lost their lives during the extreme heatwave.
The scientists emphasized that climate change, driven by activities such as burning fossil fuels, is making heatwaves more frequent, longer, and hotter across the globe. The researchers conducted an analysis comparing current climate conditions, with approximately 1.2°C of global warming, to the pre-industrial climate to quantify the impact of human-caused warming on the extreme temperatures in the region.
According to Kiswendsida Guigma, a Climate Scientist at the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre in Burkina Faso, the recent extreme temperatures were unprecedented in many areas, underscoring the dangerous nature of the heatwave. The researchers found that the additional heat generated by climate change was a matter of life and death for many individuals in the region.
The study revealed that both daytime and nighttime temperatures during the heatwave would have been impossible without human-induced warming. Climate change made maximum temperatures 1.5°C hotter and nighttime temperatures 2°C hotter in the Burkina Faso and Mali region, while the wider West Africa area experienced a 1.4°C temperature increase during the five-day period.
Furthermore, the researchers warned that unless significant action is taken to reduce emissions and move away from fossil fuels, events like the recent heatwave will become more frequent and perilous. With global warming projected to reach 2°C in the coming decades, similar extreme heat events could occur ten times more frequently.
The study also highlighted the influence of factors such as El Niño, fasting during Ramadan, conflict, poverty, limited access to safe drinking water, rapid urbanization, and strained health systems, which exacerbated the impact of the heatwave in the region.
The study, conducted by 19 researchers from various institutions worldwide, sheds light on the urgent need to address climate change and its impact on extreme weather events like the deadly heatwave in West Africa.
