Heatstroke has killed 61 people in Thailand so far this year, more than in all of 2023, the health ministry said on Friday after weeks of scorching weather across the region. A wave of exceptionally hot weather blasted Thailand in recent weeks, prompting authorities to issue warnings about scorching hot weather on a near-daily basis. The health ministry said Friday that 61 people have died from heatstroke since the beginning of 2024, compared with 37 in the whole of 2023. The kingdom this year experienced a delay in its monsoon season, with sweltering hot weather lasting longer than normal. In April, the kingdom recorded a temperature of 44.2 degrees Celsius (111.6 degrees Fahrenheit) recorded in the northern province of Lampang — just shy of the all-time national record of 44.6C hit last year.
