A heat wave stretching from central to eastern U.S. is breaking decades-old temperature records, with the National Weather Service warning of a potentially deadly weather event. About 80 million people from Indiana to New England are under heat advisories or excessive heat warnings.
In response to the high temperatures expected to last until the weekend, New York Governor Kathy Hochul has activated the state's Emergency Operations Center.
"This is a deadly event," Hochul said after Syracuse hit 94 degrees Fahrenheit on Monday, surpassing a 1994 record.
She emphasized the severity of the situation, noting that heat is likely to cause more deaths than other weather events. New York state will open its beaches and public pools early for the Juneteenth holiday, and New York City is opening its cooling centers for the first time this year.
Chicago recorded 97 degrees F at O'Hare International Airport on Monday, breaking a 1957 record.
Tuesday saw temperatures around 91 degrees F with a heat index reaching 95 degrees F. Residents like Breanne Trammell, 43, are seeking ways to stay cool, including purchasing air conditioners and visiting cooling centers.
City workers in Chicago are distributing water and food to homeless camps and encouraging people to use shelters as cooling stations. High temperatures pose risks of dehydration, heat exhaustion, heatstroke, and exacerbate pre-existing conditions.
Other cities, including Detroit, Philadelphia, and locations in New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Maine, are also expected to set record temperatures. Out west, firefighters are battling wildfires in high temperatures and low humidity conditions. A wildfire northwest of Los Angeles has burned 12,000 acres and forced 1,200 people to evacuate, while wildfires in southern New Mexico have led to evacuations in Ruidoso village.
Although it is unclear if climate change is driving this heat wave, it is occurring earlier than usual, with central Maine experiencing temperatures 30 degrees above average. NWS meteorologist Marc Chenard highlighted the danger, noting that people are unprepared for such an early and prolonged heat wave in the Ohio Valley and New England.