Tens of millions of Americans are living under excessive heat advisories and warnings as weather forecasters warn of dangerously hot conditions in the United States over the next 24 hours, according to NBC News.
The National Weather Service (NWS) said in a bulletin on Sunday, July 24, that numerous record highs are forecast to be tied and/or broken today in the Northeast. The heat wave is expected to last through Tuesday, July 26, in the U.S. The bulletin said that the mercury could hit 105 to 110 degrees Fahrenheit when taking humidity into account.
The bulletin added that an excessive heat warning was issued for large swaths of Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. According to the NWS, extreme heat and humidity will significantly increase the potential for heat-related illnesses, particularly for people working or participating in outdoor activities.
Heat wave strikes New York, Boston, and D.C.
The NWS issued another statement in a separate tweet, saying that the heat will feel extremely oppressive from the southern plains to the Northeast, especially in New York City, Boston, and Washington, D.C.
Forecasters predicted a high of 99 degrees in the city of Boston, which would break the daily record. The temperature in the city hit 100 degrees on Sunday afternoon, the highest it has been for the calendar day for 89 years.
There has already been one heat-related death reported in New York. The city's chief medical examiner said pulmonary emphysema and hypertensive cardiovascular disease were listed as the contributing conditions to the person's death. No other details about the heat wave victim were made immediately available.
The NWS said in a later bulletin that 85 million Americans were under excessive heat warnings and heat advisories in the U.S. on Sunday. Heat kills more people annually than any other type of weather event in the United States.
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Heat-related deaths rising across the U.S.
The NWS added that stifling heat is also on tap from Oklahoma and central Kansas to the Middle Mississippi Valley, where a large swath of heat advisories and a few excessive heat warnings are currently in place. Temperatures could reach 111 degrees in parts of Oklahoma, including the city of Tulsa, and thermometers could hit the hundreds in multiple Texas and Las Vegas cities.
According to a medical examiner, other heat-related deaths during the heat wave this week include a 73-year-old man who was found in a room without air conditioning in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on Thursday, July 21. The old man had several underlying medical conditions, including diabetes, according to CNN.
In Dallas, a 66-year-old woman who also had underlying health conditions died last week due to the heat wave, according to county officials. According to local officials, a 22-year-old hiker also died due to possible dehydration and exposure on Wednesday, July 20, after he ran out of water in a South Dakota national park.
