The Chinese Ministry of Health and the China Meteorological Administration jointly released an official Emergency Plan for Heatstroke Incidents. The plan is designed to effectively prevent and monitor heatstroke incidents resulting from the recent sweltering weather that has lingered over most parts of the country.

The ministry has urged local health departments to strengthen their inspection systems for heatstroke incidents beginning August 1. The direct-reporting system for public health emergencies under the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention has requested that cases be reported in a timely fashion.

Local health departments and meteorological bureaus are also ordered to launch heatstroke prevention programs and to strengthen public disease education policies.

According to the emergency plan, heatstroke incidents are put into four categories based on weather conditions, their severity and how they develop.

From June 1 through September 30, local authorities should activate and maintain their monitoring and reporting systems. Health departments should cooperate with meteorological bureaus, submitting prevention and treatment plans together to local governments. In this way advance cautionary notices can be released to the public.

Weather conditions that provoke heatstroke also fall into four levels. The specific colors: blue, yellow, orange and red, indicate danger, with blue the least severe and red the most serious.

(China.org.cn by Huang Shan, August 1, 2007)