UK Heatwave Cost Economy $1.5 Billion, Wiped Out 24 Million Work Hours: Study

Britain's record-breaking June heatwave resulted in some 24 million lost hours of work, costing the economy 1.15 billion euros ($1.5 billion), according to an estimate released Thursday by the London School of Economics (LSE).The UK, France and other European countries saw an exceptional spell of heat in June which disrupted transport, schools and hospitals, raising concerns about health and poorly-adapted infrastructure."Those working in jobs more highly exposed to heat and that are physically demanding, in sectors such as construction and agriculture, reduced their hours by more than those working in low-exposure and physically undemanding jobs such as academia," the study found.On average, the reported reduction in hours worked across the week of June 22 was 0.47 hours, according to the study by the Grantham Research Institute at LSE and the Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change (CMCC), which surveyed a sample of 1,950 adults across the UK.The study showed that 3.6…