'Silent killer': The science of tracing climate deaths in heatwaves

Many residents suffer from the intense heat during the summer, due to the lack of basic cooling facilities and weak infrastructure. [AFP]

A heatwave scorching Europe had barely subsided in early July when scientists published estimates that 2,300 people may have died across a dozen major cities during the extreme, climate-fuelled episode.

The figure was supposed to "grab some attention" and sound a timely warning in the hope of avoiding more needless deaths, said Friederike Otto, one of the scientists involved in the research.