Lack of heat action plan leaves Hong Kong’s vulnerable residents at risk, experts warn

Environmentalists and academics in Hong Kong have criticised the absence of a comprehensive heat-health action plan in the city's five-year plan and latest policy address, warning that relying on "common sense" is failing to protect vulnerable residents from rising temperatures. A new study by the University of Hong Kong (HKU) found that extreme heat may have contributed to as many as 3,238 excess deaths in the city over the past decade.

While the government has proposed a "city brain" system to improve interdepartmental collaboration during extreme weather, environmentalists argue that a systemic, cross-departmental heat action plan is necessary to address urban heat and protect the most vulnerable residents.

Brief written by urgent.news from South China Morning Post - Hong Kong's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.