It's about to be the summer in July, but it's already hot every day and the maximum temperature reaches 40 degrees or more at 6 observation points a day, which is the largest number of points per day in the history of observation. rice field.
In the summer of 2022, it is necessary to take measures against infection and save electricity in this heat.
How should we spend ...
From today to July, the sea opens
At the beach in Anan City, Tokushima Prefecture, the sea opened for the first time in three years on the 1st, and local children enjoyed their first swim.
The Kitanowaki Beach in Anan City was opened for the first time in three years, and nearly 100 people, including children and parents of a nearby kindergarten, gathered for the first Shinto ritual to pray for safety at the sea.
After this, the children lined up on the sandy beach with a floating ring and ran into the sea all at once with the signal of "Yoi, Don".
"Triple bitterness" "heat"
It became dangerous heat in various places for one day, and in Kiryu City, Gunma Prefecture, 40.4 degrees Celsius was observed before 2:30 pm, which was the highest temperature in Japan.
In addition, the maximum temperature during the day is
40.3 degrees in Isesaki City, Gunma Prefecture
, 40.2 degrees in Katsunuma, Koshu City, Yamanashi Prefecture
, 40.1 degrees in Hatoyama Town,
Saitama Prefecture, and 40 degrees in Kumagaya City, Saitama Prefecture and Tajimi City, Gifu Prefecture
. The maximum temperature reached over 40 degrees Celsius at the observation points, which is the highest number of points per day in the history of observation.
According to the Tokyo Fire Department and others, 119 men and women between the ages of 7 and 97 were taken to the hospital by 3:00 pm on the 1st on suspicion of heat stroke.
The city center of Tokyo on the 1st was a hot day with a maximum daytime temperature of 37 degrees Celsius for 7 consecutive days.
"Triple bitterness" "Power saving"
Even in this heat, power saving is also called for.
The government lifted the "Power Supply and Demand Tight Warning" issued within the jurisdiction of TEPCO in 30 days, but requested power saving nationwide for the first time in seven years, saying that the power supply and demand situation will continue to be severe this summer. ..
For three months from July 1st to the end of September, we are calling for cooperation in saving electricity within a reasonable range, such as turning off unnecessary lights while using air conditioners properly.
"Triple pain" "Infection increase"
And another concern is the new coronavirus.
Infections of 23,156 people were announced nationwide on the 1st (as of 18:20).
Comparing the number of newly infected people on average for one week, the number has started to increase nationwide.
The average number of new infections per day is about 17,464, which is higher than the previous week in the populous metropolitan area and 32 prefectures such as Kansai, Tokai and Kyushu.
Professor Kazuhiro Tateda of Toho University, a member of the government subcommittee, said, "The number of infected people is on the rise, and it seems that it is starting to get stronger. If this situation continues for another two or three weeks, the next major infection will be. We have to think about the possibility of becoming a wave. "
Both heat stroke and infection control ... School site "difficult to balance"
As we enter the summer, which can be called "triple pain," we are faced with difficult measures at school to achieve both heat stroke countermeasures and infection control measures while paying attention to power saving.
At "Renjaku Gakuen Mitaka Municipal No. 6 Elementary School" in Mitaka City, Tokyo, the temperature measured in the school grounds exceeded 35 degrees Celsius from the morning of the day, and the heat index exceeded the standard during lunch break, so it was broadcast in the school so as not to play outside. Was called in.
A series of children complained of poor physical condition due to the heat, and more than 50 people visited the infirmary in the morning alone.
In each case, after a short break, my physical condition improved.
At this school, all classrooms are equipped with air conditioners, and when using them, the windows and doors are always opened about 10 cm for ventilation based on the guidelines set by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology as an infection control measure for the new corona.
However, in the record heat these days, even if the set temperature of the air conditioner is set to the lowest 20 degrees, the temperature in the classroom will rise to nearly 30 degrees.
For this reason, we are making efforts to make children feel comfortable, such as adjusting the width of the windows while checking whether ventilation is possible using a carbon dioxide concentration measuring device.
Some teachers cleaned the air conditioner filters while the children were away from the classroom to help cool them.
This teacher said, "It is important to save electricity, but since it is in this heat, we are responding by lowering the set temperature to the limit. I wish I could close the window, but I will definitely speak out in class, so when considering infection control It cannot be completely closed. We are doing what we can to prevent infection, being careful not to cause heat stroke in our children. "
Also, at this school, it is difficult to lower the temperature of the classroom sufficiently even if the air conditioner is used with the windows open, so we called on children and parents to bring heat stroke countermeasure goods.
Many children took classes for a day wearing towels that get cold when they get wet.
A 5th grade boy said, "It's hot and hard in the classroom, but it's unavoidable to open the window to prevent corona infection. I want to wrap a cold towel around my neck and survive."
Principal Kazuhiko Fujiwara said, "It is difficult to balance heat stroke measures and infection control measures, and in this heat, we give priority to heat measures to protect the lives of children. I am worried about the spread of infection, but corona measures I want to thoroughly implement the basics. "
How do you balance it?
Heat stroke prevention and infection control measures
How to balance heat stroke prevention and infection control measures.
“Remove the mask if you can get enough distance from people outdoors”
The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare is calling for the mask to be removed unless there is sufficient distance from people outdoors, and it is possible to secure a distance indoors, and it is not necessary to wear a mask when there is almost no conversation.
“Priority is given to measures against heat stroke at school sites”
The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology has indicated the idea of wearing masks at school, and mentioned physical education classes, club activities of the athletic club, and when going to and from school as situations where the risk of heat stroke is expected to be particularly high. So, in such situations, we are requesting that we give priority to measures against heat stroke and instruct them to remove the mask.
On top of that, we are demanding measures such as keeping the distance between children and students as much as possible and thoroughly ventilating indoors, and it is necessary to ventilate even when using the air conditioner.
As a ventilation method, we recommend that you always open the windows in two directions at the same time as much as possible, and if you cannot, open the windows at least once every 30 minutes for several minutes.
A person in charge of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology said, "Heat stroke is a serious life-threatening problem for children. Especially at this time when the risk is high, we want you to give priority to heat stroke measures and make them compatible with infection control measures."
A reasonable way to save electricity
On the other hand, the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy summarizes specific power saving actions that can be done at homes and businesses, and the power reduction rate by that.
1. Power saving at home
The first is power saving that can be done at home within the jurisdiction of TEPCO.
Air conditioners consume the most electricity at home in the summer.
Raising the room temperature within a reasonable range leads to power saving. For example, raising the set temperature by 2 degrees from 26 degrees to 28 degrees can reduce power consumption by 5.4%.
In addition, cleaning the filter of a clogged air conditioner is said to have a 1.9% reduction effect.
Regarding power saving of air conditioners, the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy wants us to work within a reasonable range to prevent heat stroke.
Lighting is 2.5% when the brightness of a room such as the living room is reduced, 1.5% when unnecessary lights are turned off, the TV is set to energy saving mode to reduce the brightness of the screen, and when not watching, the power consumption is reduced by 2 It is said that it can be suppressed by%.
For refrigerators, changing the set temperature from "strong" to "medium" to avoid overcooling, reducing the time to open the door and not overloading food will save 1.2% of electricity.
2. Power saving that can be done by a company
Next, I would like to talk about power saving that can be done by companies.
In office buildings, thinning out the lights in the room by about half is 12.7%, and turning off the lights in unused conference rooms and corridors is 3.3%, which are said to have a power saving effect on the entire building.
At wholesale and retail stores, it is said that power consumption can be reduced by 11.7% by reducing the lighting of stores by about half, and by 2.4% by turning off unused offices, signboards, and external lighting.
For the manufacturing industry, measures for production equipment, which accounts for more than 80% of power consumption, are effective. In particular, strengthening the heat insulation of electric furnaces and electric heating devices can reduce power consumption by 7%.