MANILA, April  24, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Extreme heat scorched parts of South
and Southeast Asia Wednesday, prompting schools across the Philippines to
suspend classes, heat warnings in the Thai capital and worshippers in
Bangladesh to pray for rain.

The high temperatures were recorded just a day after the United Nations
said Asia was the region that suffered the most disasters from climate and
weather hazards in 2023, with floods and storms the chief causes of casualties
and economic losses.

Extensive scientific research has found climate change is causing heatwaves
to become longer, more frequent and more intense.

"It's so hot you can't breathe," said Erlin Tumaron, 60, who works at a
Philippine seaside resort in Cavite province, south of Manila, where the heat
index reached 47 degrees Celsius (117 degrees Fahrenheit) on Tuesday.

"It's surprising our pools are still empty. You would expect people to come
and take a swim, but it seems they're reluctant to leave their homes because of
the heat."

March, April and May are typically the hottest and driest months in the
archipelago but conditions this year have been exacerbated by the El Nino
weather phenomenon.

The heat index was expected to reach the "danger" level of 42C (108F) or
higher in at least 30 cities and municipalities on Wednesday, the state weather
forecaster said.

The heat index measures what a temperature feels like, taking into account
humidity.

The Philippine Department of Education, which oversees more than 47,600
schools, said nearly 6,700 schools suspended in-person classes on Wednesday.

There was also a 50 percent chance of the heat intensifying in the coming
days, Ana Solis, chief climatologist at the state weather forecaster, told AFP.

She said people needed to limit the time they spent outdoors, drink plenty
of water and take umbrellas and hats when going outdoors to guard against the
"extreme heat".

- Severe heatwaves -

Global temperatures hit record highs last year and the UN's World
Meteorological Organization said Asia was warming at a particularly rapid pace,
with the impact of heatwaves in the region becoming more severe.

The WMO's State of the Climate in Asia 2023 report found Asia was warming
faster than the global average, with temperatures last year nearly two degrees
Celsius above the 1961 to 1990 average.

"Many countries in the region experienced their hottest year on record in
2023, along with a barrage of extreme conditions, from droughts and heatwaves
to floods and storms," said WMO chief Celeste Saulo, who described the report
as "sobering".

WMO Deputy Secretary-General Ko Barrett said: "Extreme heat is increasingly
becoming the big silent killer".

The report highlighted the accelerating rate of key climate change
indicators such as surface temperature, glacier retreat and sea level rise,
saying they would have serious repercussions for societies, economies and
ecosystems in the region.

But "heat-related mortality is widely under-reported and so the true scale
of premature deaths and economic costs... is not accurately reflected in the
statistics," Barrett said Wednesday.

- 'It's terrible' -

The Indian Meteorological Department said in a news release severe heatwave
conditions were likely in the eastern and southern states of Odisha, West
Bengal, Sikkim and Karnataka over the next five days.

Thai authorities in Bangkok issued an extreme heat warning and urged people
to stay indoors for their own safety.

Temperatures were forecast to hit 39C (102F) in the sprawling Thai capital,
while the heat index rose above 52C (126F).

"Warning: the heat index today is 'extremely dangerous'. Please avoid
activities outdoors," the Bangkok city environment department wrote on Facebook.
Thailand sweltered through a heatwave this week that pushed the mercury in
the northern province of Lampang close to a national record of 44.6C (112.3F)
on Monday.

The Philippines ranks among the countries most vulnerable to the impacts of
climate change and around half of its provinces are drought-stricken.

Mary Ann Gener, a government worker in Occidental Mindoro province, said
people working indoors with air conditioning were fine.

"But it's terrible for those outside," she said.

"You get a headache immediately after you go out. You really need to
hydrate."