Or should they be named for Exxon, Chevron, et al. as Jacquie Patterson suggested? https://newrepublic.com/minutes/144735/we-naming-hurricanes-exxon-chevron-not-harvey-irma , https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/nov/06/hurricanes-climate-change-fossil-fuels https://www.planetizen.com/node/94703/study-hurricanes-should-be-named-exxon-and-chevron
Heat wave ‘Hugo?’ New coalition seeks to name hot weather like hurricanes.
The Washington Post | Jason Samenow Heat waves are a silent killer. Unlike other extreme weather phenomena, you can’t see them coming, and they don’t leave behind a trail of destruction. But they kill more people than any other weather hazard in the country and exact a greater toll in the developing world. And they are getting worse because of climate change. What if we named and ranked them, as we do tropical storms, to increase their visibility and raise awareness of their danger? A new, international coalition put together by the Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center has declared naming and ranking heat waves its “number one priority.” For decades, public health, weather and climate experts have grappled with how to raise public awareness of heat waves and the understanding of their threat. The 1995 Chicago heat wave killed more than 700 people. The 2003 European heat wave was blamed for as many as 70,000 excess deaths. More than 50,000 people died in a heat wave in 2010 in Russia. […] The call to name and rank heat waves originates from the Extreme Heat Resilience Alliance, launched this week. Its members include emergency response organizations such as the Red Cross Global Disaster Preparedness Center; science research hubs such as the National Center for Atmospheric Research; several cities, including Athens, Mexico City, Miami and Tel Aviv; corporations, nonprofits and reinsurers. […] A long-standing challenge officials have faced in reducing the toll from heat waves stems from the fact the those most likely to be adversely affected are the least likely to be equipped to take action. The most vulnerable groups include those with mental illness, the socially isolated, older adults living alone, low-income families and the homeless. Lacking access to air-conditioning is a particularly high-risk factor. “I think the naming creates a media opportunity for a more dramatic awareness [and] a more dramatic call for preparation and for action,” Baughman-McLeod said, noting that the naming of tropical storms has brought more resources into communities. “We don’t have the decision-maker awareness to protect and prepare people for extreme heat. That’s what this is about.” The alliance isn’t just putting a naming proposal forward. It’s also seeking to better assess the cost to cities of dealing with heat waves and change the way public health data is recorded to more easily track heat-related illnesses and deaths.
Heat wave ‘Hugo?’ New coalition seeks to name hot weather like hurricanes.
The Washington Post | Jason Samenow Heat waves are a silent killer. Unlike other extreme weather phenomena, you can’t see them coming, and they don’t leave behind a trail of destruction. But they kill more people than any other weather hazard in the country and exact a greater toll in the developing world. And they are getting worse because of climate change. What if we named and ranked them, as we do tropical storms, to increase their visibility and raise awareness of their danger? A new, international coalition put together by the Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center has declared naming and ranking heat waves its “number one priority.” For decades, public health, weather and climate experts have grappled with how to raise public awareness of heat waves and the understanding of their threat. The 1995 Chicago heat wave killed more than 700 people. The 2003 European heat wave was blamed for as many as 70,000 excess deaths. More than 50,000 people died in a heat wave in 2010 in Russia. […] The call to name and rank heat waves originates from the Extreme Heat Resilience Alliance, launched this week. Its members include emergency response organizations such as the Red Cross Global Disaster Preparedness Center; science research hubs such as the National Center for Atmospheric Research; several cities, including Athens, Mexico City, Miami and Tel Aviv; corporations, nonprofits and reinsurers. […] A long-standing challenge officials have faced in reducing the toll from heat waves stems from the fact the those most likely to be adversely affected are the least likely to be equipped to take action. The most vulnerable groups include those with mental illness, the socially isolated, older adults living alone, low-income families and the homeless. Lacking access to air-conditioning is a particularly high-risk factor. “I think the naming creates a media opportunity for a more dramatic awareness [and] a more dramatic call for preparation and for action,” Baughman-McLeod said, noting that the naming of tropical storms has brought more resources into communities. “We don’t have the decision-maker awareness to protect and prepare people for extreme heat. That’s what this is about.” The alliance isn’t just putting a naming proposal forward. It’s also seeking to better assess the cost to cities of dealing with heat waves and change the way public health data is recorded to more easily track heat-related illnesses and deaths.
