Weather-Related Fatalities in Australia between 2006 and 2019: Applying an Equity Lens
Peden, Amy E., Heslop, David, and Franklin, Richard C. (2023) Weather-Related Fatalities in Australia between 2006 and 2019: Applying an Equity Lens. Sustainability, 15 (1). 813.
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Abstract
Extreme weather events can cause significant human, economic and infrastructure losses. Within a changing climate, heatwaves, droughts, and floods are becoming more frequent and severe. Unfortunately, those who are most vulnerable are often disproportionately impacted. In this study, we examined the epidemiology of weather-related fatalities due to excessive heat (International Classification of Diseases [ICD]-10 codes X30); excessive cold (X31); storm and flood (X37; X38); and other causes (X32, X33, X39) in Australia between 2006–2019. There were 682 deaths due directly to weather-related events (41% excessive cold; 37% excessive heat; 15% storms and floods). The mean age of a weather-related victim in Australia was 60.8 years (SD = 24.1), with people aged 65+ years 12.8 times (95% confidence interval [CI]: 9.23–17.6) more likely to die due to a weather-related event. As the planet warms our study identifies declining excessive cold-related deaths, while other types of weather events remain steady or increase. In the context of climate change we must protect those most at risk; children and adolescents due to storms and floods, those with co-morbidities (particularly circulatory system disorders) and the elderly. Special attention should be paid to preventing excessive heat-related death among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and international visitors.
| Item ID: | 78572 |
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| Item Type: | Article (Research - C1) |
| ISSN: | 2071-1050 |
| Keywords: | climate change, co-morbidities, cold, extreme weather, flood, heat, mortality, preparedness, resilience, storm |
| Copyright Information: | © 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) |
| Funders: | National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (NHMRC) |
| Projects and Grants: | NHMRC APP2009306 |
| Date Deposited: | 25 Oct 2023 03:33 |
| FoR Codes: | 42 HEALTH SCIENCES > 4206 Public health > 420602 Health equity @ 70% 41 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES > 4101 Climate change impacts and adaptation > 410103 Human impacts of climate change and human adaptation @ 30% |
| SEO Codes: | 20 HEALTH > 2004 Public health (excl. specific population health) > 200499 Public health (excl. specific population health) not elsewhere classified @ 80% 19 ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY, CLIMATE CHANGE AND NATURAL HAZARDS > 1904 Natural hazards > 190404 Hydrological hazards (e.g. avalanches and floods) @ 20% |
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