Death toll in heat wave tops 30; more than 10,000 taken to hospitals

The education ministry instructed local education boards and universities nationwide to take thorough measures to prevent heat stroke.

Would these measures include not doing vigorous activity outdoors during a heatwave?

Ah_so, please clarify your definition of "vigorous activity outdoors" ?

The education ministry instructed local education boards and universities nationwide to take thorough measures to prevent heat stroke.

Except the one thing that would work: banning sports events when temps are over 30C.

Dangerously high temperatures fail to be recognised here.

People here in Kansai still walk at the same speed and even run! Hurrying past me to their next appointment-all in temperatures of over 35°C.

However, I pity the children being exposed to such high temperatures but adults here should know better.

It's summer, it's hot. Why are the news stories treating it like its a Suprise? Yes sadly people are dying maybe thats due to a lack of education or worse. I seem to recall there being a summer period each year my entire life. And I take appropriate actions. These group activitys are absolutely stupid and unnecessary in conditions that cause death or heatstroke. Summer is not the time to vigorously run around.

NHK was showed some HS kids in Tottori, watching their peers play in that prefecture's qualifying baseball tourney, of course in full midday sun. OIJ. For a country freaking out about its shrinking population you'd think they'd take a more cautious approach with the living.

"Among those who died was an 80-year-old woman believed to be working at a farm in Sado, Niigata Prefecture, and another woman in her 90s in a field in Yabu, Hyogo Prefecture. A man in his 80s, who was mowing a rice paddy in Soja, Okayama Prefecture, also died."

I know some will question their decision to work in such conditions, but what's most appalling is that so many elderly people here are toiling like peasants.

does common sense exist in Japan ?

It's not just in Japan. A lot of countries especially from four seasons nation are underestimating the dangerous effect of the sun. 93 deaths are also recorded in Quebec Canada so far

105?

What was he or she doing that caused them to be hospitalized for heat-stroke at 105? My god, they should be lounging in front of an air conditioner sipping cold drinks and regaling their great-great grandchildren with tales of the early Showa years. The last Tsar of Russia and his family were still alive 105 years ago!

It's not just in Japan. A lot of countries especially from four seasons nation are underestimating the dangerous effect of the sun. 93 deaths are also recorded in Quebec Canada so far

Of course, but as always, hard to tell reading the opinions on here, full of people that believe bad decision making and incompetence is solely a Japanese phenomenon.

Ah_so, please clarify your definition of "vigorous activity outdoors" ?

It is the opposite of leisurely activity indoors.

Sorry, not sure what you're getting at here. Are any of the words unclear to you? I presume the only word that is open to interpretation is "vigorous".

Of course, but as always, hard to tell reading the opinions on here, full of people that believe bad decision making and incompetence is solely a Japanese phenomenon.

Oldman, let's hear your excuse for why a 6 year old boy had to die. Document how this is a regular occurrence throughout the world.

Keep hydrated, plenty of liquids.

Of course that means less alcohol which dehydrates.

Ah_so, during adolescence teenagers often do vigorous things outdoor and you can't forbid that.

The education ministry instructed local education boards and universities nationwide to take thorough measures to prevent heat stroke.

Would these measures include making students sit outside for hours with no shade and/or protection from the sun like, wide brimmed hats, long sleeve shirts, keep hydrated, etc? Obviously not because that is exactly what they doing in that photo. Not one of the students in the image has a wide brimmed hat nor do they seem to have any kind of drink with them.

Heatstroke is easily overcome with a bit of common sense. I went to the private high school I work in for a meeting on Wednesday and there were kids playing soccer at 1pm in the afternoon. It was 38' at the time. And, the track and field club were running up and down the stairs inside the building at the same time. This is not common sense. It is complete madness!

Glad to report that after (a clashed and rather charged) meeting, my company won’t be letting the kidz outside except for pool from now on under any circumstances.

Yes teenage kids do vigorous things, they are also lazy and usually when not forced into doing something will find the most comfortable spot. Part of growing up, if allowed to. Me I'm in a toys r us swimming pool at 4.30am 4pm 9pm so I guess I haven't grown up. Shogani.

Oldman, let's hear your excuse for why a 6 year old boy had to die. Document how this is a regular occurrence throughout the world.

Humans have a tendency to underestimate severe weather, resulting in death. It happens everywhere, and has happened throughout time. It's nothing specific to Japan, which is the point I got from Oldman's post.

Unfortunately, humans can only survive through a fairly narrow temperature range. The world has a wider range of temperatures than we can handle, and sometimes we die.

Of course, but as always, hard to tell reading the opinions on here, full of people that believe bad decision making and incompetence is solely a Japanese phenomenon.

Not solely a Japanese phenomenon, but they just do it so dam well!

Oldman, let's hear your excuse for why a 6 year old boy had to die. Document how this is a regular occurrence throughout the world.

Children dying inside cars in summer in the US.

https://edition-m.cnn.com/2018/07/03/health/hot-car-deaths-child-charts-graphs-trnd/index.html?r=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.co.jp%2F

they are also lazy and usually when not forced into doing something will find the most comfortable spot.

Exactly! Herein lies the problem - 'superiors' constantly projecting their expectations on others. Just back off and live and let live!

In Japan it's called school. In my country, it's called child abuse.

I must edit my previous post. I stated the kids in the photos do not have drinks. However, that was incorrect. A few of the kids do have drinks. You can clearly see one of the boys skulling down a bottle of tea. This is a huge mistake! Tea is a diuretic and will make you even more dehydrated. This is what happens to a lot of the elderly people. They sit at home in front of the fan drinking heaps of green tea or wheat tea without the aircon running. They are actually killing themselves. The fans dry your sweat, which keeps your body cool. The tea just makes them go to the toilet more often further dehydrating them. After a few days of doing this through 35'+ temps they will become extremely dehydrated, get sick and possibly die from heat stress brought on by severe dehydration. It's one thing for the government to run campaigns warning people about the dangers of high temps, but it's a completely different thing to educate people about how to prevent dehydration and heat stress.

I come from northern Australia where temps are 35'+ for months on end and the humidity is extremely high throughout the monsoon season. We are taught how to survive these extreme temps from elementary school. There is a lot more to surviving extreme temps than just drinking fluids. Of course, the most effective thing is, just stay out of the sun!

Many students participating in school activities in various areas around the country were also rushed to hospitals, but none sustained serious or life-threatening injuries.

In Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture, a number of high school students complained of symptoms of heatstroke or heat exhaustion, and eight were taken to hospital.

The eight were taking part in sports events on school grounds or in gymnasiums as the mercury climbed to 34.5 C in the city.

Seriously. Can we make schools accountable for this lack of common sense. In summer al outdoor activities (excluding swimming) should be prohibited.

I was asking if you had fact checked yourself on whether or not kids die of heat stroke in other developed nations or not. It's good to hear that they have school closures because of heat in the US.

Heat cause fatalities all over the world but that's not what we're discussing here, is it. We're talking about what institutions can do to provide safe environments for children.

Stay out of the sun, young or old. If you find yourself having to be exposed to the temperatures - stay hydrated.

I really feel at this stage of the Summer, outdoor activities should be put on hold for now.

Heat cause fatalities all over the world but that's not what we're discussing here, is it.

I've been discussing this point:

Of course, but as always, hard to tell reading the opinions on here, full of people that believe bad decision making and incompetence is solely a Japanese phenomenon.

So it's what I've been discussing.

The Abe govt should make an emergency call to lower electricity bill to help people to use their air conditioners, and open all public places for people to come if they don't have ways to cool their houses. Drinks should free anywhere when people have to be, hospitals should get ready for seniors. It is hard to believe that the govt has done almost nothing so far, except announcing more people dead.

Instead of making Japanese have solar panels, so free aircon, our dear leader wants go to Middle East and buy oil and burn it.

I've been discussing this point

What's the sound of one hand clapping?

They should introduce “la siesta” just like in Spain. It would save a lot of lives.

I’ve told my sons Japanese Rugby coaches about how it’s a Winter code and is played from March thru August for schoolboys in NZ,it fell on deaf ears and the stupidity rolls on, the sidelines look like an infirmary most days... The amount of heat genareted in a scrum during a game here in July could thaw your frozen eda mame quicker than a microwave! Rescheduling games to late afternoon is a bit of a sham, no sun but still almost the same temperature ...time for a rethink on JHS club activities in summer? Yeah nah...

It is a myth that coffee dehydrates you, so I'm sure tea, with its lower caffeine content, is perfectly fine. If the taste stimulates weary people to drink more, tea is better than water.

Caffeine use is rife among people during endurance sports like running and cycling. There is no way pros would use caffeine gels if they were dehydrating, since dehydration hampers performance.

Caffeine does not agree with some people, but that is a different issue. The boy in the photo might be drinking barley tea anyway.

How about, more grass, less concrete, shorter days in peak summer, less grueling (and meaningless) sports practices, more fans/aircon and less students crammed into classrooms, go home when your work is done and replenish your body, stagger some working hours to avoid mass-congestion while commuting.

But especially this one: how about allowing people (especially school kids) to make their own personal (guilt free!) judgement calls regarding their own health when they need to cool/slow down - rather than adhering roboticly to the traditions and expectations of some disconnected, old geezer 'has beens' who don't want to rock the rickety old boat ahead of finally receiving their golden parachutes.

Surely it's time for action, as opposed to re-action in Japan. How many 6 year olds have to die before common sense is given a chance?

Oh, and stop wearing (insert expletive here) suits!

And in a few weeks hundreds of high school boys will go to Koshien to play baseball during the height of the Osaka summer.

Absolutely foolish.

just drink and wear hat, i reckon the reason at least half get sun stroke is because of stupid and misguided belief that wearing more and black protects you, and that irrational fear of getting tan or speckles.. like every summer many women including runners wear long thick black clothes and full face masks... with somehting under as well ( like anyone cares if the sweaty ,stinky you got only a sport bra under.. ) ...

I literally had to spend an hour convincing someone that cycling 3h under sun wearing chamisole and bra and black long sleeve top is a stupid idea... a

One of my coworkers who is a tennis coach at a junior high school, he basically stopped the tennis club for the past few days because of the weather whilst other coaches make their students do the usually scheduled practices. I don't understand why others follow suit? Seeing the track and field team doing laps when it's 36C outside is just cruel.

Kids or adult outdoor events will never be cancelled unless it's a typhoon, earthquake.

It's way too much trouble to cancel and reschedule.

I suspect the death toll is much higher. To get an accurate figure, people should be comparing the death rate for the same period in a typical July with one during a heatwave. If the death rate is higher, is is likely to be mainly due to the heatwave.

So, my son, who is 5, goes to a Japanese hoikuen.

This morning, before he left for school, we had a long talk about the 6 year old boy who died from heat stroke.

I told him that if he is playing outside at school and starts to feel hot or thirsty, to tell the teacher. Even if everyone is still playing. And if the teacher tells him that it is OK and that he should stay outside, that he should tell the teacher he wants to go home.

He said "But what if the teacher gets mad at me?"

I said, "Do you want to die?"

Harsh, I know, but he got the message. Loud and clear!

Not taking any chances!

Ermm.. That's just a really weird picture.. Why is the girl showing off her thigh? I get it that it is really hot but still...

marcelitoToday 11:08 am JSTMany students participating in school activities in various areas around the country were also rushed to hospitals, 

This insanity continues year after year despite kids getting sick and even dying FFS...people need to start suing the twits in charge of BOE,s and Education Ministry making these decisions amounting to child abuse...or nothing will change because of the " kids need to toughen up, we did it too when we were young and were fine" idiotic oyaji mindsets. Of course the oyajis make their decisions in the comfort of their air conditioned offices ... they should be forced to stay on the sport field with the kids for a couple of hours in that heat and they would change their minds real quick. Makes my blood boil.

even seeing this picture reminds me of how STUPID the 'system' of 'adults' really is. The teachers and administrators ain't got no common sense, none at all. Makes my blood boil too. STUPID!

Why do foreigners get it? It's hot? Why are Japanese teachers, schools so locked into the idea that this was how it was done in the past and can not make any change without a meeting. Consensus is OK but a common sence leader is better. For gods sakes it's unhealthy to be outside doing anything. My Neice, grandkids and me all in the pool. The kids down the road are fanning themselves creating more body heat. Outstanding.

@kohakuebisu - It is a myth that coffee dehydrates you, so I'm sure tea, with its lower caffeine content, is perfectly fine. If the taste stimulates weary people to drink more, tea is better than water.

Caffeine use is rife among people during endurance sports like running and cycling. There is no way pros would use caffeine gels if they were dehydrating, since dehydration hampers performance.

Caffeine does not agree with some people, but that is a different issue. The boy in the photo might be drinking barley tea anyway.

Oh, boy! I'm glad you are not a doctor! You are so wrong! Caffein in sports drinks kills people! RE: 27 people have been killed worldwide by drinking Monster in the last few years. Caffein is also a controlled substance for professional athletes. Caffein may very well have a 'pick me up' effect on the body, but it is very quickly dispersed and leaves you feeling worse then before you consumed it. Furthermore, all teas and coffee are diuretic (look it up), which is why they are consumed for their antioxidant properties. The most effective chemical to fight heat stroke is natural glucose, which is found in natural 100% fruit juices that do not contain processed sugar. My summer refreshment is, 100% fruit juice mixed 50/50 with soda water on ice. It will replenish your glucose and kill your thirst. Coffee and tea will kill you!

Don't wear more than 1 shirt

It’s very important to teach our children how to protect from the heat stroke. Many kids I see don’t care about themselves,and wouldn’t take enough water.

Dissillusioned

Caffeine is a banned substance by the NCAA. A urinary caffeine concentration exceeding 15 micrograms per milliliter (corresponding to ingesting about 500 milligrams, the equivalent of six to eight cups of brewed coffee, two to three hours before competition) results in a positive drug test.

So normal caffeine drink or couple cups of coffee are totally fine.

6-8 cups is pretty hardcore regardless of athlete or not....

I literally had to spend an hour convincing someone that cycling 3h under sun wearing chamisole and bra and black long sleeve top is a stupid idea...

Covering up in the sun is not a stupid idea, keeping your skin in the shade keeps it cooler and reduces the risk of skin cancer. Wearing synthetic clothing is stupid, not covering your head with a hat or parasol is stupid making kids go out in the blazing sun is stupid.

As for your notion that wearing a bra is stupid, that is just bizarre.

Drinking some coffee in summer isn’t going to kill you.

Caffeine is a diuretic of course, but with coffee you are drinking water also.

Have a super strong espresso and then sweat liters is crazy, but its simply not scientific to think that drinking in a heat wave is dangerous.

Unless you can show me otherwise.

Oh, geez...

People are complaining about a picture of high school female students in uniforms at a high school baseball tournament in public???????

It's a high school baseball tournament.... in public..... in the summer.... when it is hot!!!

Great picture to remind everyone that there is a HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL TOURNAMENT being played in this unbelievable heat!

And that the loyal school classmate fans are there cheering them on!!! IN THE HEAT!!!

Anyone that has lived in Japan fully understands the point being made.

all teas and coffee are diuretic (look it up)

But that effect is very mild and doesn't cause dehydration. Here is one of many links.

http://time.com/5192272/coffee-tea-dehydrating/

As drinks made with water, coffee and tea hydrate the body. India is far hotter and drier than Japan, and they drink tea.

The heat already makes people drowsy enough without them cutting back on tea and coffee due to 1920s science.

You can clearly see one of the boys skulling down a bottle of tea. This is a huge mistake! Tea is a diuretic and will make you even more dehydrated.

Aso kohakuebisu states above, this is a basic (and common) misunderstanding. Yes, caffeine is a diuretic but in such small quantities in tea that it couldn't possibly outweigh all the water that that comes with it.

This is a huge mistake! Tea is a diuretic and will make you even more dehydrated. 

Bogus science from the 20th century there mate.

http://time.com/5192272/coffee-tea-dehydrating/

Look you learnt something today. On to tomorrow.

Drinking beer with a lot of ice and taking a cold shower then an afternoon nap works wonders.

Would I be mistaken in thinking that every year we have a child dying of overheating and only then that the schools react and stop kids from playing outside ?

If so, then there appears to be something wrong with this reactionary approach to keeping Kids safe, and a more forward thinking approach is required .... what's stopping them from doing so ?

I don't know for sure, what I would do, were I to hear from the school that one of my Kids has just died due to overheating. What can Parents do in such a case anyway ?

In Australia, even in the South part where I live, we have temperatures of the same order as Japan is now having on a recurrent basis in several months of the year. The measures that people need to take are made quite clear to everyone: avoid going outside unless you have to, drink lots of fluid (especially water), do NOT exercise hard or at all if it is very hot, and schoolchildren are made to follow these rules, so you won't see them outside either. And physical fitness over the cooler weather is a great aid to help anyone ride out extremes of temperature in either direction, and as a friend o f mine who worked in a Japanese University for much of his life commented, Japanese don't do exercise. Time and again he'd have the gym to himself. As for caffeine, that's a diuretic and will flush the water out of your system increasing dehydration. Wake up, Japanese health departments, protect your citizens by educating them!

"Please avoid to go out unless urgency or necessity"

"Don't play Sports"

"Dangerous Heat that threat lives"

Japanese Authorities is repeating so about This Summer Heat but,

2 years later,Japan is going to start Olympics in same season despite intense summer heat.

Tokyo 2020 has said "Athlete First".

But Their actual state is Commercialism First without Safety First.

Natural phenomena cannot be controlled, human behavior can..

Warnings issued by JMA are not enough, there should be announcements from the city office during hours to take precautions, just like they do during floods or typhoons.

Would they do outdoor activities during a typhoon? Why do them during such a heat wave?

a lot of Mediterranean countries have a "siesta time" why can't the Japanese adopt this style of living, the school children would not be out side exercising in the mid day sun,

a lot of Mediterranean countries have a "siesta time" why can't the Japanese adopt this style

Because Japanese work very hard.

I noticed the Japanese spend the day wiping sweat off themselves which is the body's natural cooling mechanism - wipe sweat body heats up further, wipes again the body heats up even further - unless they are in a professional environment or have bad body odour the body's natural cooling system should be left in place

Andrew Crisp: I noticed the Japanese spend the day wiping sweat off themselves which is the body's natural cooling mechanism - wipe sweat body heats up further, wipes again the body heats up even further - unless they are in a professional environment or have bad body odour the body's natural cooling system should be left in place

"Living organisms can survive only within a certain temperature range. When the ambient temperature is excessive, humans and many animals cool themselves below ambient by evaporative cooling of sweat (or other aqueous liquid; saliva in dogs, for example); this helps to prevent potentially fatal hyperthermia due to heat stress. The effectiveness of evaporative cooling depends upon humidity; wet-bulb temperature, or more complex calculated quantities such as Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) which also takes account of solar radiation, give a useful indication of the degree of heat stress, and are used by several agencies as the basis for heat stress prevention guidelines."

With global warming and increased humidity at some point the body's natural cooling system doesn't work. There will be no evaporation. There will be no heat lost as liquid sweat will not be changing states to a gas.

I don't know for sure, what I would do, were I to hear from the school that one of my Kids has just died due to overheating. What can Parents do in such a case anyway ?

okay) I'm rephrasing it)

The solution is actually really easy. With parents cooperating together they can force school administration to change the situation. If I were in such horrible situation and if I was a parent, I would anything for the school and people responsible to take a full responsibility and do not ever forget it.