While the phenomenon of thunderstorm asthma has been known about for several years, the scale and severity of the November epidemic was unprecedented. More than 1900 people called for emergency assistance and 8500 people attended hospitals. Health services and emergency workers were overwhelmed and underprepared to deal with such unprecedented chaos. The epidemic claimed the lives of nine people, while dozens more have since recovered after being treated by intensive care units.

As a result, the Victorian government will review the public health system’s response to the emergency, while an inquest into the fatalities will also be held later this year. Other states would do well to take heed. 

Whether we’re talking severe heatwaves like those that took place in Victoria in 2009, major flood events in Queensland in 2011, out of season Blue Mountains bushfires in October 2013 or 260km/h wind gusts that took out South Australia’s powerlines in September last year, it’s clear that worsening severe weather events are taking place across the country. Our emergency response and health systems are underprepared.

We know the link between climate change and extreme weather is absolutely clear: these events are set to continue to intensify, become more frequent and more severe across the nation, as our ongoing carbon emissions supercharge the climate system.

In Australia, heatwaves are especially dangerous, even though relatively predictable in the preceding days. With the nearly 400 deaths from Melbourne’s 2009 heatwave, morgues were over capacity and bodies had to be stored in refrigerated trucks.

We not only need to reduce our carbon emissions to avoid the worst possible climate future, we have to be much better prepared for what is already on the way. 

It is time to rethink health system and emergency response planning in Australia to take into account these increasingly severe events, especially as they occur alongside our ageing and increasingly vulnerable population. 

A climate-adapted health system is one that has access to good early warning information and capacity to respond. It should also be flexible enough to be able to meet the challenge of sudden, more difficult to predict consequences of extreme weather, such as the thunderstorm asthma epidemic.

There are limits to how much our bodies and our health systems can adapt to climate change and the new extremes that it brings. 

The easiest and most cost-effective way to minimise illness and death caused by climate change is to limit climate change itself, by acting now to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. 

Now is the time for the federal government to follow through with their Paris Agreement commitment to limit global warming to below 2 degrees. 

Reducing our emissions means a healthier future for Australians, fewer costs to the health system and less pressure on hospitals and emergency workers.