Heat Deaths Call for Resilience Plan

Three lives lost. Eight more nearly gone. And one burning question: Are we prepared for a future that’s already here?

Iloilo City recorded its highest heat index this year at 47°C on April 16. On the same day, four heat stroke cases were reported. In just five days, three Ilonggos died due to extreme heat. Among them were a child and young adults—victims not just of temperature but of unpreparedness.

The recent fatalities are not isolated tragedies. They are a symptom of a worsening climate crisis that has breached our doorsteps. Global warming is no longer an abstract debate for climate summits. It is a public health emergency—killing silently, swiftly, and locally.

The city government was quick to issue an executive order suspending face-to-face classes when the heat index hits 41°C. But beyond schools, what safeguards exist for workers laboring under the sun, for commuters stuck in unshaded terminals, for vendors along scorching sidewalks?

The truth is grim: we have no comprehensive protocol for extreme heat events. Executive orders, while helpful, are reactive. We cannot afford to govern by thermometer alone. What Iloilo needs is a proactive, all-sector Extreme Heat Resilience Plan embedded in its climate adaptation strategy.

This masterplan should include clear alert levels, public advisories in transport terminals, construction site protocols, shaded waiting areas, hydration stations, and cooling centers—especially in densely populated barangays. It must also protect informal workers and include contingency policies for outdoor labor across private and public sectors.

The Department of Education and the Department of Labor and Employment should reexamine safety thresholds for school and work suspension. If 41°C is now a regular figure on the heat index, then the definition of “extreme” must be redefined—from temperature readings to actual health impact and risk.

There is also an urgent need for public health integration. The Department of Health and local health offices must go beyond issuing reminders. A Heat Health Action Plan must be launched with real-time monitoring, barangay-based reporting mechanisms, and widespread public education.

People must know what symptoms to watch for, what actions to take, and where to seek help. Preventive information should be as common as weather forecasts.

We must also rethink how we build our cities. Urban heat is not just about the sun. It’s about what we cover our land with—concrete or canopy, asphalt or greenery. Iloilo’s urban planning must incorporate heat-reducing designs: reflective roofing, tree-lined corridors, open green parks, shaded walkways, and heat-absorbing materials in construction.

The rising heat index is not just a seasonal inconvenience—it is a permanent challenge. If 47°C is today’s peak, what will next year bring? How many more must collapse before we acknowledge that this isn’t just weather, it’s a warning?

We need policy reform, infrastructure redesign, and institutional overhaul.

We need to act like lives depend on it—because they do.