By PETER DOUGLAS
DANDENONG Ranges GP, Dr Sally McIlroy, has warned residents not to become complacent, despite a milder summer than in previous years.
Dr McIlroy, who is a member of Doctors for the Environment of Australia, cites recent scientific reports that show Australia continues to warm, which suggests more events such as Black Saturday could occur in the near future.
Six years after the Black Saturday bushfires in the region, Dr McIlroy says she continues to find any hot spells disturbing.
“I am lucky to live and work on Melbourne’s urban fringe,” Dr McIlroy said.
“But during the hot summer months, my bushland paradise can feel scary and I wish I lived somewhere else.”
Dr McIlroy said that while everyone on the urban fringe was potentially in danger of heat stress on hot days, there were many vulnerable people living within our community.
She said the elderly were particularly at risk.
“They tend to have various chronic medical conditions, some may forget to drink enough water and have trouble affording air-conditioning,” she said.
“They may also have trouble escaping a bushfire.
“Unlike many of us, they may not be able to drive away.”
Dr McIlroy said climate change was a public health emergency, especially for those who lived in bushfire-prone communities.
“It’s time authorities took urgent action to tackle it,” she said.
She said that when Melbourne had four consecutive days over 40 degrees in January 2014, Ambulance Victoria reported more call-outs than usual for heat-related incidents, including heart attacks.
