Record-Breaking Heat Wave Continues: Phoenix and Central US Cities Face Extreme Temperatures

2023-08-01 18:20:00

(CNN) — One of the most exceptional heat spells in US history finally ended Monday when Phoenix’s maximum temperature stayed below 43.3°C for the first time in a month, a buildup of heat that has catapulted to the city to the top of the record books. But the heat is far from over for Phoenix and many other cities in the central United States.

The maximum temperature this Tuesday was 42.2 °C in Phoenix, 1.1 °C above average. The 31 consecutive days at 43.3°C or higher exceeded the previous record by 18 days.

It wasn’t just the high temperatures that broke records: the city also set a new record for a warm minimum temperature of 36.1°C during the spell. With temperatures reaching extreme highs and barely cooling overnight, July registered a record average of 39.2°C, making it the hottest month ever recorded for a US city, according to the Office of the Climatologist. of the State of Arizona.

“It’s been a year of abnormalities and gusts, so this is a testament to how strange this year has been,” said Ryan Worley, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Phoenix.

July 2023 will go down in the history books for many locations in the southern United States.

More than two dozen cities from California to Florida might end up setting records for the warmest July. Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Kingman, Ariz.; Miami and Las Vegas have already topped the list for the warmest July on record.

These are just figures that have manifested themselves in a very real danger to people and animals.

Deathly victims

at least 25 people Have they died as a result of heat so far this year in Maricopa County, where Phoenix is ​​located, and 249 other deaths remain under investigation for a possible heat relationship, according to the county Department of Public Health.

July is typically the deadliest month of the year in terms of heat-related deaths, but this year has been “worse than years before,” Maricopa County spokesman Jason Berry previously told KTVK/KPHO affiliate from CNN. Fears of a rise in heat-related deaths prompted the Maricopa County coroner to bring in 10 refrigerated containers last week to deal with possible excess bodies.

Farmworker Dario Mendoza, 25, was one of the Arizonans who died of suspected heat-related causes in July. He collapsed in a field in Yuma, Arizona, on July 20, when temperatures reached 46.6°C, Tania Pavlak, a spokeswoman for the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office, told CNN. Mendoza is part of a legion of outdoor workers who have had no choice but to brave the heat and its extreme risk to human health.

Multiple people have died in National Parks this year from heat, including police dogs dying from heat-related illnesses in Indiana following an air conditioning failure, authorities say. Even the cacti are succumbing to the Arizona heat.

The heat is far from over

The red shaded areas show where temperatures above 32.2°C are forecast this Friday.

The end of July has not put an end to the unrelenting heat. August will begin as July ended, with stifling temperatures across much of the central United States.

More than 50 million people are under heat watches, from the southern Plains to the lower Mississippi River valley, where “feels like” temperatures will hit 110 degrees Fahrenheit or higher.

North Texas, including the Dallas metropolitan area, might reach 43.8°C this Tuesday and Wednesday.

Heat indices might reach 46.1°C in New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Even Phoenix will return to extreme heat on Wednesday, as the high pressure dome responsible for this massive heat wave shifts west once more.

Thus, on Wednesday, temperatures will once once more exceed 43.3 °C in Phoenix. Sunday’s highs might reach 46.1 °C, so the city will once more be under heat alert starting Friday and throughout the weekend.

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