BANGKOK, THAILAND – The capital prepared for a brutal summer as the city administration identified 379 extreme heat crisis zones and moved to launch a four-level warning system and emergency cooling rooms.
City flags 379 high-risk heat zones
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) had drawn up a detailed risk map with 379 zones classified as extreme heat crisis areas. Construction sites, parks, motorcycle taxi stands and cramped slums were singled out as particularly vulnerable locations with little or no natural cooling. The concrete landscape heated up relentlessly there, turning conditions life-threatening for older people and outdoor workers.
Meteorologists forecast that the hot season would run from late February to mid-May 2026 with extreme temperatures expected.
Four-level heat alert based on Heat Index
The city introduced a colour-coded alarm system based on the “Heat Index”, which combines temperature and humidity. Green signalled “observation”, yellow stood for “warning”, orange indicated “danger” and red warned of “extreme mortal danger”. Alerts were to be disseminated through apps and media so that residents could move to safety in time.
Cooling rooms as emergency lifelines
As an immediate measure, the BMA planned to open “BKK Cooling Rooms” from March to April 2026, operating daily from 11:00 to 15:00. These rooms would provide cool water, medicines and first aid, serving as lifelines for homeless people, workers and anyone without air conditioning. District offices were instructed to set up these cooling stations with a focus on protecting vulnerable population groups.
Long-term plan: “Shaping a Cooler Bangkok”
Together with the World Bank, the city developed the master plan “Shaping a Cooler Bangkok”, built on three pillars of place, people and institutions. Over the long term, more green spaces, more water and improved urban planning were intended to curb extreme heat, while building regulations would also be revised. The stated goal was a shift from reactive crisis response to proactive heat preparedness.
Heat committee to coordinate emergency response
A newly established heat management committee monitored all measures, analysing data and coordinating agencies to prevent deaths from heatstroke. The city leadership acknowledged that heat had become a deadly enemy that could no longer be ignored.
“The time for watching from the sidelines is over. Bangkok is taking action before summer turns the city into an oven.”
said city officials, according to the account in the source text.