Surviving The 2024 Malaysian Heatwave: Challenges and Recommendations from Wilderness Medicine Perspective: Surviving the 2024 Malaysian Heatwave

Abstract

Rapid modernization and expansion of technologies present a dual-edged phenomenon, offering substantial benefits to humanity while simultaneously exerting detrimental effects on the environment through the enhancement of the greenhouse effect, thereby contributing to alarming global warming. Together with the warming of the ocean surface and resurgence of El Niño phenomenon in 2023, temperatures are expected to increase at an alarming rate and precipitating heatwave-related problems that affect not only human health but also the ecosystem, social life, and agricultural productivity, potentially leading to food crises, economic disruptions, and infrastructure strain. It is imperative to enhance our preparedness to mitigate the morbidity and mortality associated with heat waves.