Heatwaves in Spain caused 1,180 deaths in past two months, ministry says
MADRID - High temperatures caused 1,180 deaths in Spain in the past two months, a sharp increase from the same period last year, the Environment Ministry said on Monday.
The vast majority of people who died were over 65 and more than half were women, the data it cited showed.
The most affected regions were Galicia, La Rioja, Asturias and Cantabria - all located in the northern half of the country, where traditionally cooler summer temperatures have seen a significant rise in recent years.
Like other countries in Western Europe, Spain has been hit by extreme heat in recent weeks, with temperatures often topping 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit).
The 1,180 people who died of heat-related causes between May 16 and July 13 compared with 70 in the same period in 2024, the ministry said in a statement citing data from the Carlos III Health Institute. The number of deaths increased significantly in the first week in July.
The data shows an event 'of exceptional intensity, characterized by an unprecedented increase in average temperatures and a significant increase in mortality attributable to heatwaves,' the ministry said.
In the period the data covers, there were 76 red alerts for extreme heat, compared with none a year earlier.
Last summer, 2,191 deaths were attributed to heat-related causes in Spain, according to data from the Carlos III Health Institute.
The data from Spain follows a rapid scientific analysis published on July 9 that said around 2,300 people died of heat-related causes across 12 European cities during a severe heatwave in the 10 days to July 2.
It was not immediately clear whether the study conducted by scientists at Imperial College London and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine was using the same methodology as the Spanish data.
(Reporting by Pietro Lombardi; Editing by Alison Williams)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Toronto Star
an hour ago
- Toronto Star
Man dies after heavy weight-training chain around neck pulls him into MRI machine
WESTBURY, N.Y. (AP) — A man who was pulled into an MRI machine in New York after he walked into the room wearing a large weight-training chain around his neck has died, according to police and his wife, who told a local television outlet that he waved goodbye before his body went limp. The man, 61, had entered an MRI room while a scan was underway Wednesday afternoon at Nassau Open MRI. The machine's strong magnetic force drew him in by the metallic chain around his neck, according to a release from the Nassau County Police Department.
Vancouver Sun
an hour ago
- Vancouver Sun
Man, 61, dies after large chain necklace pulls him into MRI machine
WESTBURY, N.Y. (AP) — A man who was pulled into an MRI machine in New York after he walked into the room wearing a large chain necklace has died, according to police and his wife, who told a local television outlet that he waved goodbye before his body went limp. The man, 61, had entered an MRI room while a scan was underway Wednesday afternoon at Nassau Open MRI. The machine's strong magnetic force drew him in by his metallic necklace, according to a release from the Nassau County Police Department. He died Thursday afternoon, but a police officer who answered the phone at the Nassau County police precinct where the MRI facility is located said the department had not been given permission to release the name Saturday. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Adrienne Jones-McAllister told News 12 Long Island in a recorded interview that she was undergoing an MRI on her knee when she asked the technician to get her husband, Keith McAllister, to help her get off the table. When he got close to her, she said, 'at that instant, the machine switched him around, pulled him in and he hit the MRI.' 'I said: 'Could you turn off the machine, call 911, do something, Turn this damn thing off!'' she recalled, as tears ran down her face. 'He went limp in my arms.' She told News 12 that the technician summoned into the room her husband, who was wearing a 20-pound chain that he uses for weight training, an object they'd had a casual conversation about during a previous visit. 'He waved goodbye to me and then his whole body went limp,' Jones-McAllister told the TV outlet. A person who answered the phone at Nassau Open MRI on Long Island declined to comment Friday. The phone number went unanswered on Saturday. It wasn't the first New York death to result from an MRI machine. In 2001, 6-year-old Michael Colombini of Croton-on-Hudson was killed at the Westchester Medical Center when an oxygen tank flew into the chamber, drawn in by the MRI's 10-ton electromagnet. In 2010, records filed in Westchester County revealed that the family settled a lawsuit for $2.9 million. MRI machines 'employ a strong magnetic field' that 'exerts very powerful forces on objects of iron, some steels, and other magnetizable objects,' according to the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, which says the units are 'strong enough to fling a wheelchair across the room.' Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here .
Edmonton Journal
an hour ago
- Edmonton Journal
Man, 61, dies after large chain necklace pulls him into MRI machine
WESTBURY, N.Y. (AP) — A man who was pulled into an MRI machine in New York after he walked into the room wearing a large chain necklace has died, according to police and his wife, who told a local television outlet that he waved goodbye before his body went limp. Article content The man, 61, had entered an MRI room while a scan was underway Wednesday afternoon at Nassau Open MRI. The machine's strong magnetic force drew him in by his metallic necklace, according to a release from the Nassau County Police Department. Article content Article content Article content He died Thursday afternoon, but a police officer who answered the phone at the Nassau County police precinct where the MRI facility is located said the department had not been given permission to release the name Saturday. Article content Article content Adrienne Jones-McAllister told News 12 Long Island in a recorded interview that she was undergoing an MRI on her knee when she asked the technician to get her husband, Keith McAllister, to help her get off the table. Article content When he got close to her, she said, 'at that instant, the machine switched him around, pulled him in and he hit the MRI.' Article content 'I said: 'Could you turn off the machine, call 911, do something, Turn this damn thing off!'' she recalled, as tears ran down her face. 'He went limp in my arms.' Article content She told News 12 that the technician summoned into the room her husband, who was wearing a 20-pound chain that he uses for weight training, an object they'd had a casual conversation about during a previous visit. Article content Article content 'He waved goodbye to me and then his whole body went limp,' Jones-McAllister told the TV outlet. Article content Article content A person who answered the phone at Nassau Open MRI on Long Island declined to comment Friday. The phone number went unanswered on Saturday. Article content It wasn't the first New York death to result from an MRI machine. Article content In 2001, 6-year-old Michael Colombini of Croton-on-Hudson was killed at the Westchester Medical Center when an oxygen tank flew into the chamber, drawn in by the MRI's 10-ton electromagnet. In 2010, records filed in Westchester County revealed that the family settled a lawsuit for $2.9 million. Article content MRI machines 'employ a strong magnetic field' that 'exerts very powerful forces on objects of iron, some steels, and other magnetizable objects,' according to the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, which says the units are 'strong enough to fling a wheelchair across the room.'
