Singapore to open more than 300 cooling centres if heatwave strikes

The centres will be activated under the national heatwave response plan, with the public alerted at least four days in advance through myENV.

Singapore could open more than 300 cooling centres across the island if a heatwave hits, as the country prepares to respond to rising temperatures.

The centres will be air-conditioned and equipped with seats. They will include community centres, selected Residents’ Committee (RC), and Residents’ Network (RN) centres, as well as some indoor sports halls, according to The Straits Times.

Their locations will be announced once the heatwave response plan is activated, said Calvin Chong, Divisional Director of the Energy & Climate Policy at the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment (MSE).

The public will be alerted to an impending heatwave at least four days in advance through the national weather app myENV.

If a centre is close to capacity, priority will be given to vulnerable groups, such as elderly people, Chong said.

He was speaking to The Straits Times and Lianhe Zaobao in an interview on 18 August at the Environment Building, as Singapore prepares to deal with the impacts of hotter weather.

Singapore sees more days of high heat stress

Rising heat has been cited as one of the clearest and most evident impacts of climate change affecting Singapore, with the country currently facing the effects of the dry south-west monsoon season coinciding with an El Nino weather phenomenon. This combination brings hotter and drier conditions to Singapore.

According to the National Environment Agency (NEA), 17 days of high heat stress were recorded this year based on readings from nine heat stress monitoring stations. This compares with five days over the same period in 2025.

Typically, a heatwave in Singapore is declared when the daily highest temperature averages 35 degrees Celsius for three consecutive days, with a daily mean temperature of at least 29 degrees Celsius.

The El Nino event is also intensifying into what scientists have described as a potential “Godzilla” event.

For Singapore, extreme temperatures could be recorded when the El Nino event weakens, which could happen between March and May 2027, the NEA has warned. This period also coincides with the hottest time of the year.

National heatwave response plan sets out measures

As further quoted by The Straits Times, Chong said the Government is studying the situation closely and is prepared to activate the heatwave response plan if the required temperature thresholds are reached. Singapore last experienced a heatwave in April 2016, towards the end of a powerful El Nino episode. The country’s first national heatwave response plan was announced in early 2025, setting out measures for different sectors, including allowing schools to move to partial or full home-based learning, while pre-schools and nursing homes should avoid outdoor activities between 11am and 4pm during a heatwave.

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