Sharjah heat safety drive covers construction sites, delivery bikers

The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP), in collaboration with the Supreme Council for Family Affairs in Sharjah and several government and private entities, has completed six major awareness stations as part of the “Prevention of Heat Exhaustion” campaign.

The initiative, taking place in Sharjah throughout July and August, coincides with the midday work ban and supports the Year of Community initiatives. Its primary goal is to protect workers and promote health awareness during the high summer temperatures.

Now in its 14th edition, the campaign is held under the slogan “Your Safety is Our Goal.” It focuses on educating workers about the dangers of heat exhaustion and how to prevent it, emphasising the importance of proper health practices during the peak heat season. The initiative is part of national efforts to raise awareness and safeguard workers from extreme weather risks.

The campaign has reached thousands of workers at key locations across Sharjah, including various cultural and sports clubs and centres in areas such as Sharjah city, Al Hamriyah, Al Dhaid, Kalba, Khorfakkan, and Dibba Al Hisn. Awareness activities at these sites included lectures on the risks of heat exhaustion, first aid demonstrations, field medical check-ups, and the distribution of protective items to help workers stay safe in the heat. Additional awareness events are ongoing at other locations, including the Sharjah Cement Factory and Al Qasimia University Theatre.

In addition to scheduled events, the campaign included field visits where health professionals educated workers on health procedures and advised employers at construction sites and factories about the importance of preventive measures. For the first time, the campaign also included new target groups such as cleaners, gas station workers, public park and parking staff, delivery personnel, and female workers. These groups were provided with vital information on how to minimise their exposure to heat and prevent exhaustion.

Mohammed Abdullah Al Zarouni, Director of the Ministry’s Representative Office in Sharjah, emphasised that completing these awareness stations marks a vital step in the country’s broader strategy to protect worker health.

The Health Education Department at the Supreme Council for Family Affairs stated that the campaign underscores the importance of empowering workers with the knowledge to adopt healthy practices.

The third-hottest July worldwide ended a string of record-breaking temperatures, but many regions were devastated by extreme weather amplified by global warming, the European climate monitoring service said on Thursday.

Heavy rains flooded Pakistan and northern China; Canada, Scotland and Greece struggled to tame wildfires intensified by persistent drought; and many nations in Asia and Scandinavia recorded new average highs for the month.

“Two years after the hottest July on record, the recent streak of global temperature records is over,” Carlo Buontempo, director of the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, said in a statement.

“But that does not mean climate change has stopped,” he said. “We continue to witness the effects of a warming world.”

As in June, July showed a slight dip compared to the preceding two years, averaging 1.25 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial (1850-1900) era.

2023 and 2024 warmed above that benchmark by more than 1.5C, which is the Paris Agreement target set in 2015 for capping the rise in global temperatures at relatively safe levels.

That deceptively small increase has been enough to make storms, heatwaves and other extreme weather events far more deadly and destructive.

“We continued to witness the effect of a warming world in events such as extreme heatwaves and catastrophic floods in July,” Buontempo said.

Last month, temperatures exceeded 50C in the Gulf, Iraq and -- for the first time -- Turkey, while torrential rains killed hundreds of people in China and Pakistan.

In Spain, more than a thousand deaths were attributed by a public institute to the heat in July, half as many as in the same period in 2024.

WAM