Definition, causes, effects, and incident of heat waves and natural fires in the Philippines and other countries.

1. Environmental Biology & Ecology

3. oBy World Meteorological Organization
• when the daily maximum temperature of
more than five consecutive days exceeds
the average maximum temperature by
5°C (9°F)
oIn the Netherlands, Belgium, and
Luxembourg
• period of at least 5 consecutive days in
which the maximum temperature in De
Bilt exceeds 25°C (77°F)

4. oIn Denmark
• a period of at least 3 consecutive days of which period the
average maximum temperature across more than fifty
percent of the country exceeds 28°C (82.4°F)
oIn U. S. (definitions varying in region)
• a period of at least two or more days of excessively hot
weather.

5. oIn Northeast of U. S.
• three consecutive days where the temperature reaches or
exceeds 90°F (32.2°C)
oIn Adelaide, South Australia
• five consecutive days at or above 35°C (95°F), or three
consecutive days at or over 40°C (104°F)

6. oIn England and Wales where the Met Office operates a
Heat Health Watch system which places each Local
Authority region into one of four levels
• defined by the maximum daytime temperature and
minimum night time temperature rising above the
threshold for a particular region

7. The length of time spent above that threshold determines
the particular level.
Level 1  normal summer conditions
Level 2
 a 60% or higher risk that the temperature will be above the
threshold levels for two days and the intervening night
Level 3
 when the temperature has been above the threshold for the
preceding day and night
 there is a 90% or higher chance that it will stay above the
threshold in the ff. day
Level 4
 if conditions are more severe than those of the preceding
three levels
 associated with more widespread response

8. oA heat wave is a prolonged period of
excessive heat (defined as
temperatures that hover 10 degrees or
more above the average high
temperature for the region during
summer months, last for an
extended period) , often combined with
excessive humidity.

10. oA system of high atmospheric
pressure from aloft-10,000-25,000 ft.

11. oSummertime weather patterns

12. o“Almost Certainly” Due
to Global Warming?

14. oHeat exhaustion,
with symptoms such
as heavy
perspiration,
headache, nausea,
severe thirst
oDehydration (if heat
exhaustion would
become worse)

15. oHeat stroke Heat rash (prickly heat)

16. oHeat cramps Heat syncope (fainting as a
result of overheating)

17. oPower shortages or outages (due to high
demands of electricity) along with spikes
in electricity which can also create a
power failure
oIncrease in water demand

18. oPoor vegetation
oDegradation of water quality and
negative impacts on fish population

19. oRampant algae growth leading to massive fish kills
oMilk production decreases
oHigh rate of spoilage on refrigerated goods
oNatural fires/forest fires

20. oUnsafe operations for aircrafts
(aircrafts lose lift at high
temperatures)
oHighways and roads are damaged
(buckle) by excessive heat

21. oAsphalt roads soften
oMechanical failures (stress is placed on automobile cooling
systems, diesel trucks, and railroad locomotives)

23. oManila heat wave, not yet but we are
almost there (2010)
A boy sits inside a plastic container as he
takes a bath to cool off himself at a Manila
suburb, Philippines on Sunday, April 7, 2013.

25. oAustralian Heat wave, 9 January
2013
Tammy Holmes and her grandchildren take refuge under
a jetty as a wildfire rages nearby in the Tasmanian town
of Dunalley.

27. oFire is the rapid oxidation of a
material in the exothermic chemical
process of combustion.
oFire, in its most common form can
result in conflagration.
oFire is an important process that
affects ecological systems around the
globe.

28. oFire has been used by humans for cooking, generating
heat, light, signaling, and propulsion purposes.
oThe negative effects of fire include hazard to life and
property, atmospheric pollution, and water contamination.

29. Fire Triangle

30. oan uncontrolled fire in an area of combustible vegetation
that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area
oother names: brush fire, bush fire, forest fire, desert fire,
grass fire, hill fire, peat fire, vegetation fire, and veld fire

31. oDiffers from other fires by its extensive
size
oCharacterized in terms of the cause of
ignition, their physical properties such as
speed of propagation, the combustible
material present, and the effect of
weather on the fire.
A wildfire in California on September 5, 2008

33. oLightning

34. oSparks from falling rocks

35. oVolcanic activity
oSpontaneous combustion of plant
materials and other organic matter

37. To succeed in geography, yo
Social
Economic
Environmental
the world!
Effects The SEE Effects
Social Economical Environmental
Primary  Loss of life and
injury to people
and animals who
caughtin the
flames
 Destructionof propertyand
possessions
 Burning of
vegetationand
crops
 Hugeamountsof
smokes released
Secondary  Health
problems for
people as a
result of the
smoke and ash
 Homeless-ness
 Loss of jobs and incomes for
agricultural workers whose
animals/crops are destroyed
 Decline in the tourist
industry, leading to loss of
jobs
 Insurance premiums rise
 Access to recreational areas is
restricted
 Soil erosion and
landslides
because there is
less vegetation to
bind the soil
together
 Loss of habitats
for animals may
lead to extinction

38. oPositive Effects: Germination of Seeds
• Fires take warm air up into the tops of the trees, which
dries the cones and makes them split, allowing the seeds
to pop out. It also clears the undergrowth allowing the
seeds to germinate.

40. oForest fire hits Mount Banahaw
(2014)
FIRE AND BRIMSTONE – Grass fire on a portion of the ‘sacred’
Mount Banahaw southeast of Manila has forced the military to
scramble and send at least three of its helicopters to help put out
the blaze which has thus far engulfed more than 50 hectares of the
forest, popular among religious pilgrims and mountaineers.

42. o1997 Indonesian forest fires
Air pollution over Southeast Asia in October 1997

43. Prepared by: Katleen Martin
October 2014