Las Vegas And Phoenix Boil In 110 Degree Heat

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Las Vegas and Phoenix are each forecast to have temperatures of over 110 degrees F over the next two days, and the heat index will be higher. People who do not have air conditioning are at risk for severe health problems, which can include death. Some businesses have shut down or have had to curtail their activity. This picture is often part of the weather in the arid part of the US West. It has been extremely hot in Phoenix for the entire week.

Another challenge to the heat is that it does not drop below 80 degrees at night, so the cities cannot recover from the daytime effects. This means the issue is around the clock, and there are no ready solutions. Cities do not have the means to protect tens of thousands of people who have no options other than to wait out the heat conditions. Las Vegas and Phoenix would need to pay millions to open cooling centers to handle thousands of people and more to provide them with residential AC conditioning. Those millions of dollars are not available, and they are not likely to be.

The second challenge is that some workers must labor outdoors to be effective. Each city needs many construction projects because each is among America’s most rapidly expanding cities. There is a new generation of construction that may help this.

Phoenix had 54 days when temperatures were above 110 degrees F last year. By some estimates, over 600 people died from heat in the metro area. And, based on how deaths are counted, that number is low.