- Intense US heatwave disrupted 250th anniversary events, causing illnesses.
- FIFA World Cup matches face dangerous heat, sparking safety concerns.
- Scientists: Heatwave ‘virtually impossible’ without human-driven global warming.
An intense heatwave sweeping across large parts of the United States is disrupting celebrations marking the country’s 250th anniversary and raising safety concerns for upcoming FIFA World Cup matches, as scientists say the extreme temperatures bear the clear imprint of climate change.
The findings come from an analysis by the World Weather Attribution (WWA), an international group of climate researchers, which concluded that the ongoing heatwave would have been “virtually impossible” without human-driven global warming, The Guardian reported.
Extreme Heat Disrupts 250th Anniversary Celebrations
A powerful heat dome has brought dangerously high temperatures and humidity across the central and eastern United States and parts of southern Canada.
According to the report, the soaring mercury affected Fourth of July celebrations in Washington, DC, where thousands had gathered to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the United States.
Organisers temporarily suspended activities at the Great American State Fair on Friday afternoon because of the extreme heat. According to NBC Washington, more than a dozen attendees were treated for heat-related illnesses and injuries, while 11 people were taken to hospital before the event was temporarily closed.
In Pennsylvania, authorities declared a mass casualty incident after more than 100 people attending the Union Pacific Big Boy whistle stop event required treatment for heat-related illnesses. Emergency crews deployed ambulances, cooling buses and medical tents to assist those affected.
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World Cup Matches Face Heat Risk
The heatwave is also expected to affect several FIFA World Cup fixtures scheduled this weekend.
France’s match against Paraguay in Philadelphia is forecast to be played under extreme heat conditions that the global football players’ union has previously said could justify delaying or postponing games, The Guardian reported.
Another match between Cape Verde and Argentina in Miami is also expected to take place amid potentially dangerous heat and humidity for players and spectators.
Study Says Heatwave Was ‘Virtually Impossible’ Without Climate Change
According to WWA researchers, the current heatwave is an exceptionally rare event, estimated to occur only once every 200 years under today’s climate conditions.
However, they found that without the approximately 1.4 degrees Celsius of global warming caused primarily by fossil fuel emissions, such an event would not have been expected even once in many thousands of years.
“The climate the country has today is fundamentally different to the one it had when the founding fathers signed the Declaration of Independence,” said Theodore Keeping, an extreme weather and wildfire researcher at Imperial College London.
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Scientists Warn Of Growing Impact
The heatwave has also affected transportation, with Amtrak cancelling more than two dozen train services in the northeastern United States and warning passengers of possible delays due to high temperatures.
Climate scientists said the disruption to major national celebrations and global sporting events underscores the growing impact of climate change.
“When a historic Fourth of July celebration is disrupted, and World Cup matches are played in conditions that are unsafe for players and fans, it shouldn’t take another scientific study to wake people up,” the report quoted Friederike Otto, professor of climate science at Imperial College London’s Centre for Environmental Policy, as saying.
“Climate change is here; it’s already impacting the things we enjoy in our everyday lives, and it will continue to get worse the longer we drag out the inevitable transition to net zero emissions,” she added.
