Extreme Heat Events

Heatwaves kill more Australians than any other natural disasters. They have received far less public attention than cyclones, floods or bushfires - they are private, silent deaths which only hit the media when morgues reach capacity or infrastructure fails. There has never been a national study which uses a common definition of heatwaves and directly comparable mortality data. Australia has no national heatwave plan. This report remedies these deficiencies and recommends strategies for the national, state and local governments as well as for citizens.

Much is being done, but there is much more we can do to make our cities, our homes and businesses, our infrastructure and our citizens more resilient. Central to this effort will be the development of a national Excessive Heat Factor forecasting framework which recognises local differences in heat conditions and experience - fortunately this report suggests that with the right support the Bureau of Meteorology could provide this tool quite rapidly. With this early warning, and making intelligent use of conventional and social media, emergency services, social and health workers, families and carers will be in a much better position to respond.

This is the second report in PwC's thought leadership program which was prompted by the loss of life and property which resulted from the record temperatures recorded across southern Australia in February 2009. Our first report Effective Disaster Recovery was published in July 2010.