Heat Wave Yago Sevilla: ProMETEO names incoming heat wave in Seville, Spain
Fri, Jun 23, 2023
SEVILLE—JUNE 23, 2023 — Seville’s heat wave naming and categorization system has identified Heat Wave Yago Sevilla – the second heat event to officially be named in advance of a dangerous heat episode.
Launched last year, the proMETEO Sevilla initiative was developed by the Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center in collaboration with the University of Seville and the City of Seville. The pilot initiative predicts that the intensity of this approaching heat wave will exceed that of Heat Wave Zoe, which was Seville’s first named heat wave in July 2022.
Because this heat wave poses serious health threats to Sevillians, proMETEO and the City of Seville issued guidance to residents—particularly the most vulnerable—so they can prepare and take precautions. Heat Wave Yago Sevilla is expected to reach the system’s maximum levels on June 25th, 26th and 27th.
As climate change increases the intensity, frequency, and duration of heat waves in the region, the new heat wave categorization and naming system was designed to raise awareness and inform Seville’s residents about the dangerous effects of heat on human health. Specifically, it anchors public warnings to a three-tiered categorization system that is integrated with the city’s emergency and disaster response plans.
The system examines factors like the daytime maximum temperatures, humidity, nighttime temperatures, and the conditions of the previous 30 days, which are all key determinants of the anticipated health impacts of an extended heat event. Heat waves designated as Category 2 and 3 events are named in descending order from the last to first letter of the Spanish alphabet.
proMETEO Seville is a collaboration between the City of Seville; Arsht-Rock’s Extreme Heat Resilience Alliance (EHRA) Science Advisory Panel—comprising leading climatologists, social and behavioral scientists, and public health and disaster relief experts—and the University of Sevilla.
