Western US braced for record heat wave

Much of the western United States is braced for record heat waves this week, with approximately 50 million Americans placed on alert Tuesday for "excessive" temperatures, which could approach 120 degrees Fahrenheit (50 degrees Celsius) in some areas.

"A prolonged and record-breaking heat wave is underway across the western US," said the US National Weather Service, with "above normal to extreme high temperatures" expected at least through the weekend.

The heat wave, which stretches like a blob over much of the western third of the US map, extends east to west from Wyoming to California, and north to south from Idaho to Arizona.

Average temperatures in the vast region are around 20 degrees Fahrenheit above the seasonal norm, with the arid desert states of Arizona and Nevada most likely to shatter records.

The Arizona city of Phoenix experienced temperatures of 115 degrees Fahrenheit on Monday but forecasters predict it could pass 118 degrees by the end of the week, with lows in the upper-80s at night.

Las Vegas in neighboring Nevada is suffering its most extreme prolonged heat wave since early summer 2013, according to local media, and the city by Wednesday could near its decades-old temperature record of 117 degrees Fahrenheit, set in 1940.

Authorities have opened "cooling stations" for vulnerable residents without access to air conditioning, and called on social media "influencers" to help warn the public about the impact of the sweltering heat on pets.

The highest temperature ever officially recorded was in nearby Death Valley, at 131.4 degrees Fahrenheit back in 1913.

As well as warning that current temperatures are "rare, dangerous and deadly," officials fear that the heat -- arriving so early in the year -- could lead to deadly forest fires, aggravated by chronic drought in the American West.

Some 88 percent of the region is in a state of drought, including all of California, Oregon, Utah and Nevada, according to the latest government surveys.

Related Links
Weather News at TerraDaily.com

Tweet

Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.

SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly

paypal only

SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once

credit card or paypal

Global warming blamed for 1 in 3 heat-related deaths
Paris (AFP) May 31, 2021
More than a third of summer heat-related fatalities are due to climate change, researchers said Monday, warning of even higher death tolls as global temperatures climb. Previous research on how climate change affects human health has mostly projected future risks from heatwaves, droughts, wild fires and other extreme events made worse by global warming. How much worse depends on how quickly humanity curbs carbon emissions, which hit record levels in 2019 but dipped sharply during the pandemic. ... read more