![]() So far this season, there have been six heat-associated deaths in Maricopa County, home to nearly 4.5 million people. The county's Office of the Medical Examiner updates suspected and confirmed heat-associated deaths every week through the warm season, which runs from May through October. Located in the Sonoran Desert, Maricopa County counts not just deaths due to exposure but also deaths in which heat is among several major contributing factors, including heart attacks and strokes. The county tallied 425 heat-associated deaths last year, a 25% increase over 2021. "That means a lot of people will continue to die."Ĭounting heat deaths has become a science in Arizona's Maricopa County, which includes metro Phoenix. "Arizona already understands heat to a certain extent, but it's getting hotter for us, too," said Russell. Meteorologists say scorching temperatures brought on by a heat dome have taxed the Texas power grid and threaten to bring record highs to the state. ![]() Tubers float the cool Comal River in New Braunfels, Texas, Thursday, June 29, 2023. Gaurab Basu, a primary care physician and the director of education and policy at the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at Harvard T.H. Now we need to learn how to prepare for heat," said Dr. "Here in Boston we prepare for snowstorms. each summer without more action to combat climate change that has pushed up temperatures, making people especially vulnerable in areas unaccustomed to warm weather. Scientists and medical experts say such deaths caused by extreme heat will only increase in the U.S. The other two fatalities were Florida residents who died while hiking in extreme heat at Big Bend National Park. The dead ranged in age from 60 to 80 years old, and many had other health conditions, according to the county medical examiner. Heat index levels of up to 112 degrees (44 Celsius) were forecast in parts of Florida over the next few days.Įleven of the heat-related deaths in Texas occurred in Webb County, which includes Laredo. A heat dome that pressured the Texas power grid and killed 13 people there and another in Louisiana pushed eastward Thursday and was expected to be centered over the mid-South by the weekend.
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