Taiwan has staged its first nationwide simulation of a prolonged 40°C heatwave, which involves several days of warm nights and high humidity, testing how authorities would respond to widespread disruptions to electricity, healthcare, transport and other critical infrastructure as climate change raises the risk of more extreme temperatures.
The exercise, organised by the environment ministry on Sunday and involving 34 central and local government agencies, simulated three consecutive days of 40°C temperatures across Taipei, New Taipei and Taoyuan after the weather administration issued its highest-level heat alert.
The scenario envisioned a cascade of impacts, including power outages affecting thousands of households, hospitals switching to backup electricity, surging emergency admissions for heat-related illnesses, railway speed restrictions caused by overheated tracks, softened road surfaces, forest fires and spontaneous combustion at waste storage sites.
Environment minister Peng Chi-ming said extreme heat had become a broader governance challenge extending beyond personal measures such as using air conditioning, affecting public health, healthcare, energy, transport, education, labour safety and vulnerable communities.
He said the exercise focused on whether authorities could issue early warnings, maintain consistent public messaging, clearly define responsibilities, rapidly mobilise resources and strengthen overall resilience.
The drill comes as Europe experiences an intense heatwave, with temperatures exceeding 40°C in several countries including France, Germany and the Czech Republic, showing growing concerns over the impacts of climate change on public health and essential services.
The risks Taiwan is preparing for also mirror a wider trend across Asia, where heat extremes are becoming more frequent and more disruptive. The World Meteorological Organization has said Asia is warming nearly twice as fast as the global average, while the Asian Development Bank has warned that extreme heat is placing growing strain on health systems, labour productivity, cities and infrastructure.
In Southeast Asia, governments are also facing rising concern over the economic and social costs of prolonged heat, particularly in densely populated cities where high humidity can worsen health risks. An Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) disaster-risk trend report released this year said the region has already experienced more frequent and intense extreme heat events, alongside heavier rainfall, as climate change reshapes the region’s hazard profile.
The growing threat has pushed heat adaptation higher up the policy agenda in the region. In January, Singapore hosted the first Southeast Asia Heat Health Forum, bringing together policymakers, researchers and health officials to discuss heat warning systems, public-health responses and urban resilience measures.
Taiwan’s environment ministry said this year’s exercise marked the first time it had simulated a sustained 40°C heatwave, expanding on a pilot exercise last year based on the weather administration’s red heat alert threshold of 38°C. The government plans to follow the tabletop exercise with a live field drill later this month.
During the simulation, state utility Taipower prioritised electricity supplies to hospitals, transport systems and water facilities while dispatching additional generation to stabilise the grid. Health authorities tested emergency department triage and cross-regional medical support to cope with rising numbers of heatstroke patients.
Transport authorities simulated monitoring rail temperatures and imposing precautionary speed restrictions on metro and railway services, while using traffic controls and water spraying to reduce heat damage to asphalt roads.
Forestry officials deployed thermal imaging equipment to detect simulated wildfires, while environmental authorities monitored waste sites after extinguishing fires to prevent reignition.
After temperatures eased in the exercise, participating agencies reviewed areas most vulnerable to extreme heat and assessed how lessons from the drill could be incorporated into local climate adaptation plans.
Experts invited to evaluate the exercise said future planning should place greater emphasis on protecting elderly people living alone, patients with chronic illnesses, outdoor workers and other vulnerable groups, while strengthening backup systems for healthcare facilities, cooling centres and other essential services.
Deputy environment minister Hsieh Yen-ju said the ministry had compiled a nationwide network of 9,641 designated cooling centres, known as “Cool Map” locations, where residents can seek relief during heatwaves.
He added recommendations from the exercise, including discussions on school closures and workplace safety measures during extreme heat, would be tested during the live drill and incorporated into Taiwan’s next four-year national climate change adaptation action plan covering 2027 to 2030.
