Heat the real killer with extreme weather conditions
Of all the weather events that occur, heat is the biggest killer.
Heat kills more than tornadoes, hurricanes, blizzards and extreme cold. We first started noticing the impact of heat on our lives when over 770 people died in Chicago in 1995 as a result of heat, mostly elderly and those on the lower end of the economic scale living in apartments that were not air conditioned.
The Guardian reported in a recent article that 61,672 people died of heat-related causes in Europe between May 30 and Sept. 4 last year. Italy, Spain Greece and Portugal saw the most deaths. Lack of air conditioning and construction of old stone structures with tin and zinc roofs was a big factor.
I can recall our own trip to Europe a few years ago and the lack of air conditioning in the hotels. I was told that summers were not like in the USA and the cost to retrofit these old buildings would be expensive.
Jeff Goodell in his book, “The Heat Will Kill You First,” describes heat as invisible. It doesn’t bend tree branches or blow your hair. It just surrounds you and works on you in ways that you can’t anticipate or control. You sweat, your heart races, you’re thirsty and your vision blurs. Plants look like they’re crying. Birds vanish from the sky and take shelter in deep shade. Cars are untouchable. Colors fade.
Forecasters in the Pacific Northwest warned of a coming heat wave in the summer of 2021. This area is not known for heat waves. The climate is moderate in both winter and summer, and this heat wave exceeded all expectations. It was born over the Pacific as a large high pressure system allowed the heat to gather beneath it. As the pile of heat grew in size it drifted to the coast and upon coming over the warmer land mass, it quickly became a heat dome. The temperature in Portland, Ore., rose from 76 to an unheard of 114 degrees. The previous record high for the city was 106. Suddenly, the city felt more like sands of Dubai.
In the mountains and valleys, every tree and plant was assaulted by the heat, rooted in place and unable to move. As the temperatures rose the plants struggled with the heat the same way we humans do, trying to preserve water while the sun and the heat sucked it out of the soil and the flesh of their leaves. All across the Northwest plants, animals and humans held their breath hoping the heat would pass.
Nobody knows for sure how many people died during the 72 hours of extreme heat in the Pacific Northwest. The official count was 1,000, but heat is a subtle killer and doesn’t always make it onto the death certificate.
As I write this another heat doom has been causing trouble in the south and southwest for several months. Unbelievable heat has plagued the southwest and Texas for several months.
Folks here are wishing for the heat to go away, however, it is still August and the forecast for these areas continues to call for temperatures above normal. Rains from Tropical Storm Hillary did bring a bit of relief, but the rain also caused flash flooding.
In our area temperatures are expected to be below normal in the waning days of August. Summer for us has been on the pleasant side. Some of those folks who moved to the Sunbelt might begin to realize what they left behind.