The world is facing the risk of "red alert" due to record heat.

On September 4, Director of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Ms. Celeste Saulo, said that rising temperatures will trigger a global "red alert" after the world's heat indexes continued to set new records in August.

According to preliminary data from the WMO - the European Union's (EU) climate monitoring agency, the world has had two consecutive years of record-high average temperatures in August. Australia, Japan, and many parts of China and Norway all experienced their hottest Augusts ever.

Although there is no exact report on the average global temperature in August, according to the EU's Copernicus Climate Monitoring Service (C3S), the temperature could exceed the figure recorded in August last year, which was 16.82 degrees Celsius.

According to the agency, the record heat in August extended the streak of months with average temperatures higher than the same period last year, and this number has now reached 15 consecutive months.

Speaking at a regional climate forum in Singapore, Celeste stressed that temperatures are rising faster than predicted because the world has not taken adequate measures to limit the impact of climate change. As a result, temperature thresholds are constantly being pushed.

Ms. Celeste called for the need to strengthen the effectiveness of monitoring and support for meteorological agencies, and to invest more resources in these agencies.

At the forum, Singapore was designated as the regional monitoring centre for forest fire and haze pollution. There are only two such centres in the world, with the mission of providing reliable information on forest fires and forecasting pollution to fill the data gap in the region.

The forum was held after the WMO released its latest assessment of the impact of climate change in the Asia-Pacific region, warning that sea levels are rising above average in many areas.