U.S. Heat Wave Peaks In Northeast As Western Temps Ease

ACROSS AMERICA — Temperatures across the Northeastern United States will spike yet again Wednesday while residents of the Pacific Northwest breathe a sigh of relief after days of record and, at times, deadly heat.

Excessive heat warnings and advisories are in effect Wednesday from New Jersey to Maine, prompting energy companies to call for reduced use and to warn about potential electrical outages, according to a Bloomberg report.

Meanwhile, scattered severe storms are expected to bring an end to the heat in some states.

The oppressive heat in the Northeast follows days of record-high temperatures in the Pacific Northwest.

About a dozen deaths in Washington and Oregon may be tied to an intense heat wave that brought scorching temperatures to cities including Seattle and Portland, where the mercury exceeded 100 degrees for multiple consecutive days, The Associated Press reported.

The heat wave was caused by what meteorologists described as a dome of high pressure over the Northwest and worsened by human-caused climate change, which is making such extreme weather events more likely and more intense, The AP reported.

Will this heat end soon? Here’s a look at how the extreme summer temperatures are affecting parts of the United States this week:

In New Jersey, temperatures will approach 100 degrees and higher in the Garden State, this time bringing the possibility of evening thunderstorms, damaging winds and flash flooding.

A heat advisory has been issued across the state from noon Monday to 8 p.m. Wednesday as heat index values as high as 104 degrees are expected. Read about the New Jersey heat wave on Holmdel-Hazlet Patch

In New York City, severe thunderstorms are expected to hit on Wednesday, bringing to an end stifling heat that has baked the city all week. The storm warning joins a heat advisory and an air quality alert already in place as temperatures have hovered just below 100 degrees all week. Read about the New York City heat wave on New York City Patch

In Connecticut, a heat advisory and a hazardous weather outlook were issued by the National Weather Service as heat index values were expected to top 100 degrees again Wednesday. Severe storms are also possible Wednesday afternoon and Thursday. Read about the Connecticut heat wave on Milford Patch

Meanwhile, in Washington state, the historic heat wave that brought three days of extreme temperatures to Puget Sound moved eastward Tuesday. On the west side of the Cascades, most in the lowlands saw afternoon highs fall into the 80s on Tuesday, with temperatures in some places down by nearly 30 degrees from Monday's record highs.

Spokane reached 109 degrees Tuesday afternoon, besting Seattle's Monday record by one degree and logging its hottest day since official records began in 1881.

The extreme heat brought its share of headaches to the state, including buckling pavement on the freeways, power outages and brush fires. A fire that ignited south of Issaquah grew to 30 acres by late Monday afternoon, as flames burned beneath high-voltage power lines and complicated firefighting efforts from the ground and the air. Read about the Pacific Northwest heat wave on Seattle Patch

Earlier this week, scorching temperatures bore down on California, prompting the state’s power grid operator to urge residents to conserve power Sunday; however, many of the excessive heat warnings ended Sunday. Read about California’s heat wave on Los Angeles Patch

From 2004 to 2018, heat killed an average of 702 people in the United States each year, according to a report by Bloomberg citing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Heat is a silent killer, it is not something visual like a tornado or a hurricane,” Kimberly McMahon, public weather services program manager for the National Weather Service, told Bloomberg. “With respect to heat fatalities, there will still be heat-related facilities days after a heat event ends.”