Heat intensifying hold on much of East, Central U.S.
NEW YORK — Americans from Texas to Maine sweated out a steamy Saturday as a heat wave canceled events from festivals to horse races and pushed New York City to order power-saving steps to avoid overtaxing the electrical grid.
The National Weather Service said “a dangerous heat wave” was expected to break record highs in some places, particularly for nighttime. Daytime temperatures were poised to hit the mid- to upper 90s, with high humidity making it feel considerably hotter.
“It’s brutal,” Jeffrey Glickman said as he paused during a run Saturday in Washington.
The 37-year-old got out early to try to escape the worst heat but still planned to cut his route short on an already 90-degree morning.
“You just have to power through it the best you can,” he said.
Many places facing excessive heat this weekend have no air conditioning, with cities opening shelters for people to cool off. While the Midwest will get some relief Sunday as a cold front moves in, the East isn’t so lucky, the weather service warned.
In Norwich, Connecticut, Larry Konecny watched as one of his workers a couple of stories up in a boom lift cleaned the outside of an office building. The pair had no choice but to work in 90-degree heat and stifling humidity because the job needed to be done when office workers were away, Konecny said.
“He’s pressure-washing, so the water is splashing. So at least there’s some degree of refreshment,” he said.
New York City authorities canceled a Times Square commemoration of the 1969 moon landing and an outdoor festival featuring soccer star Megan Rapinoe, musician John Legend and “Daily Show” host Trevor Noah.
The city also directed owners of many office buildings to set thermostats no lower than 78 degrees through Sunday to reduce strain on the electrical grid.
The measure came after a power outage — related to an equipment failure, not heat — caused a roughly five-hour blackout July 13 that affected a 40-block stretch of Manhattan, including Times Square and Rockefeller Center.
Storms from the Great Lakes to the Central Plains have caused power outages, heightening the misery.
In Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, strong winds, hail and lightning knocked out electricity to more than 200,000 people. The storms left about 20,000 customers without power in Wisconsin, toppling trees as wind gusts reached more than 80 mph.
In Philadelphia, several hundred people were evacuated from a retirement community due to a partial power outage, though it wasn’t immediately clear whether the problem was heat related. Residents were taken to a nearby shelter, and police said some went to a hospital for evaluation.
In Chicago, heat forced organizers of the Humana Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon series to cancel one of three weekend races. Saturday’s 5K is off, but a 10K and half marathon are expected to go ahead Sunday.