People across the southwestern United States struggled to stay cool on Saturday as a scorching heatwave was expected to break temperature records.
Issued by the National Weather Service too high temperature warning for this weekend covered more than 31 million people, mainly in Arizona, Nevada and California. Another 61 million people on the West Coast and South are in heat.
The weather service forecast 45 record-high temperatures across the country before the weekend. Most predictions Record breaking temperature is in the Southwest.
Cities and community organizations scramble to provide water and cool shelter to their most vulnerable populations, mainly the homeless.
In Las Vegas, temperatures are forecast to reach 116 degrees Fahrenheitand cooling centers and homeless shelters have seen an increase in visitors.
Nearly all 500 beds in the Salvation Army overnight shelter have been occupied in recent days due to the sweltering heat that lasted well into the night, according to Harold Laubach, a county coordinator for the organization in the south. Nevada.
The Salvation Army also provided a daytime cooling center in Las Vegas, averaging 250 visitors daily last week. Mr. Laubach said that number has grown to 300 visitors in recent days and continues to grow.
“There are now cooling centers across the southern United States,” said Laubach. “Many of them are doing the same thing, basically keeping people alive and healthy.”
Heat is the top weather-related killer in the US, according to Weather Service. Every year, about 67,000 people visit emergency rooms with heat-related illnesses and about 700 people die from heat-related causes each year, the World Health Organization reports. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In Phoenix, where temperatures are forecast to reach 118 degrees Fahrenheit on Saturday, city officials reported an increase in heat-related 911 calls. David Hondula, director of the city’s heat-response office, said at a news conference Friday, Thursday the desert city hit a high of 33 such calls. Up to present this year, 12 people died Officials say heat-related deaths are in Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix.
Some southwestern areas such as Tucson, Arizona also issued extreme heat warnings that last longer than usual.
“Usually, we just have extreme heat for three, four, five days in a row,” Aaron Hardin, a forecaster for the National Weather Service in Tucson, said Saturday. Mr Hardin said the current heat advisory expires on Monday but could last until midweek. He added that this month, an extreme heat warning was in place for seven consecutive days, the longest ever issued by the station.
