With climate change, extreme heat events are becoming more frequent, more severe and longer lasting posing a major and deadly public health threat people, cities and countries are only beginning to grapple with. Record-shattering heat waves in the summer of 2023—the hottest in the past 2,000 years -- underscore the growing danger. Some 2,300 people died in the U.S. from excessive heat that season, the highest number in 45 years of recorded data, according to an Associated Press analysis of data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In early June of 2024, a major heat wave developed over the Western U.S., the same heat dome which had been roasting Mexico in May, breaking records and causing howler monkeys and birds to drop from trees after dying of heat stroke and dehydration. Sweltering heat waves put 44 million under warnings as the Midwest and South reeled. By the end of June record breaking temperature had also come to the eastern seaboard causing NYC to swelter earlier in the summer than anyone remembers.
Temperature extremes most directly affect health by compromising the body’s ability to regulate its internal temperature.
The elderly, children, and people with pre-existing health conditions are particularly at risk during extreme heat events. Preparation and awareness are key to staying safe during extreme heat. Here are some practical steps to take:
CREDIT: NOAA
