Geneva, 18 July 2023 (dpa/MIA) - As parts of Europe deal with an unprecedented heatwave, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has warned of the dangers of consistently high night-time temperatures.

"The body is unable to recover" from the sustained heat, the organization's extreme weather expert John Nairn explained on Tuesday in Geneva.

The WMO said it expects the current trend towards hotter weather to continue. According to the organization, phases of extreme temperatures have in some cases increased sixfold since the 1980s.

"The world needs to prepare for more intense heatwaves," Nairn said.

According to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), around 400,000 people have died as a result of extreme climate and weather events in the past 10 years.

IFRC spokesman Panu Saaristo said that it was active in many countries to help those most likely to be affected by the hot weather, especially around the Mediterranean.

For example, the Red Cross in Italy phones older people to check on their well-being; in Spain and Portugal, the Red Cross publicizes the dangers via social media; in Greece, the Red Cross provides people with drinking water.