According to a recent report by The Washington Post, the extreme heat wave that has swept across the United States has already claimed the lives of nearly 30 individuals.
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The scorching heat wave continued to linger over Southern California the next day, and it is predicted that the triple-digit temperatures will persist. Michelle Jorden, the Chief Medical Examiner of Santa Clara County, stated that the heat wave is likely to persist until the end of the week.
According to a recent update from the National Weather Service on Thursday, the West is anticipated to experience dangerous and record-breaking heat through the end of the week. Meanwhile, the Central Plains and Southeast regions are also beginning to feel the effects of sizzling temperatures.
As per a report by The Washington Post, the scorching heat has claimed the lives of at least 28 people in the last week. The report, which gathered information from state officials, medical examiners, and news outlets in California, Oregon, and Arizona, predicts that the death toll will rise. This is due to the fact that over 135 million people in the Lower 48 states have been issued heat alerts, indicating that the situation is likely to worsen.
Last week, California experienced record-breaking heat, resulting in numerous deaths, primarily in cities like San Jose, Fresno, and Oakland. As of Wednesday, Jorden’s office was investigating 14 cases, with over half of the individuals being older than 65 and found in their own homes. One of the reported deaths in California was a motorcyclist who succumbed to heat exposure in Death Valley National Park, where temperatures soared to 128 degrees.
According to the California Department of Public Health, extreme heat episodes are becoming more frequent, severe, and longer-lasting due to climate change, which is posing a greater danger to the people of California. Heat is the most deadly weather-related hazard, causing more deaths than any other.
When temperatures soar, heat-related illnesses such as heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke can put individuals at risk. It’s important to be aware of warning signs that indicate someone’s health is being impacted by the heat. These may include heavy sweating, muscle cramps, weakness, headache, nausea or vomiting, paleness, tiredness or dizziness.
According to the Department of Public Health in California, specific groups of people are at a higher risk of experiencing health-related effects caused by heat. These groups consist of individuals without housing, those who work outside or in indoor environments without proper conditioning, older adults, infants, children, people with chronic health issues, those with disabilities, pregnant individuals, and people with low income.
According to The Washington Post, heat is the leading cause of weather-related deaths in the U.S. However, these deaths are frequently unrecognized and attributed to other causes like heart failure or cardiovascular issues, despite the fact that heat was the underlying factor. This makes heat-related deaths difficult to identify and track accurately.
Ashley Ward, who is the director of the Heat Policy Innovation Hub at Duke University, mentioned to the outlet that there are positive indications of an improvement in reporting.
According to a report by the California health department in August of last year, the United States is projected to experience over 100,000 heat-related deaths annually by the end of the century. The report also estimated that by 2050, California may experience anywhere from 6,700 to 11,300 heat-related deaths per year. In 2022, California faced a particularly deadly heat wave, resulting in 395 excess deaths over a 10-day period, which was 5% more than expected, as per the report.
A report from the Kaiser Family Foundation revealed that heat was the primary or contributing factor in approximately 1,670 deaths across the country that year. The report cited provisional data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
According to the KFF, the heat-related death rate reported is the highest in at least two decades. It is worth noting that data from this year is not yet available, and 2021 previously recorded the second-highest death rate. This year has been exceptionally hot in many parts of the country, and it remains to be seen how the data will reflect the current situation.
According to the KFF, the impact of rising global temperatures on health-related deaths, while acknowledged like the CDPH, is not the sole driving factor behind the surge in such fatalities.
According to the source, substance abuse, specifically the misuse of methamphetamines, has become a significant contributor to heat-related illnesses. The article explains that methamphetamines have the potential to elevate body temperature to hazardous levels, and the deadly combination of meth abuse, hot weather, and homelessness has become a serious concern.
According to a report by The Washington Post, the U.S. has experienced a staggering number of heat records this year, with hundreds being set since July. The severity of the heat has even resulted in rescue helicopters being grounded. The report also revealed a disturbing trend of increasing heat-related deaths in the country, with numbers rising from approximately 1,700 in 2022 to over 2,300 in the previous year.