Three lionesses die in Tokyo zoo as heatwave scorches East Asia

What the report says

Three lionesses at Tokyo’s Tama Zoological Park have died from suspected heatstroke as a severe heatwave grips East Asia, Al Jazeera reported on 4 August 2026. The zoo said the animals — Mugi, aged three, Ichigo, 11, and Luena, 15 — died over the course of the previous week, and staff believed the hot weather played a role. A zoo spokeswoman said keepers had been stepping up heat precautions in recent years, noting that Japan’s summer humidity can make conditions especially hard on animals.

The article says the broader heatwave is also putting pressure on people and public services across the region. In South Korea, President Lee Jae Myung told officials to expand support for those most affected and review power systems as air-conditioning demand rises. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said the heat-related death toll there had reached 19, while 2,025 people had suffered heat-related illness since mid-May. South Korea also reported a new national temperature high of 42.5C in Yangsan.

In Japan, the fire and disaster management agency said nearly 18,600 people were taken to hospital for heatstroke in a one-week period in late July, with 45 pronounced dead on arrival. The report also noted heat advisories in North Korea and wildfire risks in parts of Europe and the United States. More broadly, scientists say human-driven climate change is making extreme heat more frequent and intense, though that background context was included by Al Jazeera rather than newly reported by 256 Newsroom.