Friday 29 June marks the arrival of a heat wave in the country. The Interregional Environmental Unit (IRCEL) activated Wednesday the warning phase of its heat wave action plan. The various organisations working with particularly vulnerable groups, such as home assistance services, nursing homes, general practitioners, crèches and youth organizations, will receive a reminder and guidance on protection from the heat.
The IRCEL launched the warning phase Wednesday on the basis of the Royal Meteorological Institute (IRM) weather forecast, so that everyone might get ready for the weekend’s heat wave.
“We especially advise drinking enough water and keeping rooms in the house as cool as possible. We insist in particular that everyone takes care of the others, children, the elderly and isolated persons. “Do they drink enough? Are their clothes not too warm? Do they have a cool place for resting?” lists the spokesperson of the Flemish Agency for Care and Health (Vlaams Agentschap Zorg en Gezondheid) Joris Moonens.
“We also specifically request that organizations working with a vulnerable public, such as children, seniors and the ill, be attentive. That they activate their in-house action plan, which involves measures such as awareness-raising of their public and staff, or activities that are adapted to high temperatures.”
The “high temperature and ozone peaks plan’’ consists in three phases: vigilance, warning, then alert. The second, which runs from 15 May to 30 September, consists in particular in reminding agents of good reflexes, so they get organized.
This warning phase begins up to two days before the actually intense heat. Then, the authorities send an e-mail to a list of organizations which work with fragile persons, so that they make appropriate arrangements.
The Brussels Times
