More than 100 million people are under various heat alerts Thursday in more than two dozen states from parts of the American West to New England, a suffocating cocoon that experts believe will become more common due to effects of climate change.
Areas most at risk for dangerously warm temperatures cover the southwest, central, and south-central U.S. along with the mid-Atlantic and northeastern coastal region, the weather service noted.
The distressing heat wave has pushed state and local leaders to emit heat emergencies and provide resources to residents to mitigate high temperatures.
Philadelphia on Thursday declared a heat emergency due to the expected oppressive heat, activating emergency programs such as field special teams conducting home visits and raising awareness for homeless people, the health department said in a statement. press.
Similarly, in New York, residents are advised to stay indoors for the next few days, as the heat continues to sweep across the state to prevent “dangerous conditions that can cause heat stress and illness.” , according to Jackie Bray, commissioner of the state homeland. Security and Emergencies Division.
Temperatures above 90 degrees are expected to remain in New York City, Philadelphia and Boston over the weekend, if not longer.
Meanwhile, the three-digit heat will continue to burn in parts of California, Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and Tennessee on Thursday, meaning 1 in 5 Americans will suffer dangerous conditions after what has already been a historic week. in terms of coverage. heat records, CNN meteorologist Robert Shackelford said.
The heat is expected to persist over the weekend in many places, and more than 85% of the population – or 275 million Americans – could see high temperatures above 90 degrees over the next week. More than 60 million people could see high temperatures of 100 degrees or more over the next seven days.
Heat index values, the temperature felt when heat is combined with humidity, could exceed 100 degrees in several states this weekend, especially in the Midwest, Southeast and East Coast. .
Wide strips of the south, including parts of eastern Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi and Alabama, and the central east coast from South Carolina to New Jersey will see some of the most pronounced dangers (seen in these maps in the dark). orange) from the heat of Thursday.
This danger becomes more evident in parts of the Midwest this weekend, in parts of southern Illinois, Missouri and Iowa, before returning to the east coast on Sunday.
Predicted heat index values indicate that much of the rest of the United States should be extremely cautious.
Excess heat in the United States has been accompanied by deadly conditions in Europe, where records have been broken and the European Forest Fire Information System has put 19 European countries on “extreme danger” warnings for forest fires .
Three-digit heat registers in various states
Three-digit records were set Tuesday and Wednesday at various locations in Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma, where Tulsa EMS reported that it had answered about 250 heat-related emergency calls so far this year.
“These numbers are what we expect to see in mid to late August,” Adam Paluka, a spokesman for the Emergency Medical Services Authority, said Wednesday. “So we’re four to six weeks ahead of where we’ll normally see those 200 call numbers.”
“It’s very worrying,” he added, “especially because the number of patients being transported indicates that some of these calls are a heat stroke, which can be fatal.”
In Abilene, Texas, temperatures on Wednesday reached 110 degrees, breaking the 1936 record on that date. Another 104-degree record was set in San Antonio, Texas, surpassing the 101 degrees last experienced in 1996.
And as of Tuesday, the Austin area hit at least 100 degrees in 38 of the last 44 days, according to the weather service.
“We ask people to save energy so that the systems continue to work,” Austin Mayor Steve Adler said Wednesday. “We ask everyone to do it so we can overcome it together.”
The Texas Electric Reliability Council, which operates about 90 percent of Texas ’power grid, said it set another energy demand record Wednesday, surpassing a record set the day before.
In addition, on Wednesday, a record high of 103 degrees in Fayetteville, Arkansas, exceeded the 102 degrees observed on that 2012 date.
Another Arkansas city, Mountain Home, recorded 107 degrees Wednesday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.
“This would break the old record high of 102 degrees for that date in 2012. Official record reports are not sent until midnight, but it sure looks like a new record,” the weather service wrote Wednesday evening.
Facing the heat
To help residents overcome the heat, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu announced that at least 12 community centers will be open for anyone who wants to cool off. In addition, more than 50 splashes will be available at the city’s playgrounds and playgrounds, he said, as he declared a heat emergency through Thursday.
Meanwhile, some local officials have taken the step to hire chief heat officers to help navigate the response to the extreme heat.
Jane Gilbert, director of heat for Miami-Dade County, told CNN’s Don Lemon on Tuesday that Miami now has almost twice as many days with a heat index, as the air feels, more than 90 degrees than in years. seventy.
“This is not just about people’s health, but their pocket. Our outdoor workers can’t work that long, they waste working time. People can’t afford this AC, the cost “It’s both a health and economic crisis.”
David Hondula, director of the Phoenix Heat Response and Mitigation Office, echoed that sentiment, saying, “Heat can affect everyone, we’re all at risk.”
High temperatures are one of the leading causes of climate-related deaths in the U.S., according to Kimberly McMahon, director of the National Weather Service’s public meteorological services program.
CNN’s Jason Hanna, Christina Maxouris, Mike Saenz, Dave Alsup, Robert Shackelford and Joe Sutton contributed to this report.