Sweltering heat strikes East Coast, Deep South
BOSTON >> Dangerously high temperatures threatened much of the Northeast and Deep South on Thursday, as huge swaths of the country sweltered under a heat wave that could continue for days and send temperatures soaring in places like Boston, Little Rock and Virginia Beach.
As some temperatures neared 100 degrees, millions of Americans sought comfort by staying in the shade of homes or in airconditioned offices, and cooled themselves in fountains, at beaches or in cooling centers.
The heat was expected to extend into the weekend, prompting officials to urge people to seek shelter, as well as to drink lots of water and be good Samaritans by checking on elderly neighbors for signs of distress.
“It's going to be very hot and humid. Hydrate and stay in shaded areas,” said James Tomasini, a meteorologist in Uptown, New York.
In the New York City area, temperatures will again soar into the 90s — below triple-digit records — but the high moisture in the air will make it feel well over a 100 degrees, he said.
Excessive heat warnings — issued when the heat index surpasses 105 degrees continuously for at least two hours — were in effect in parts of the Deep South and pockets of the mid-Atlantic.
Heat advisories extended along the East Coast, from South Carolina to southern Maine.
In Boston, residents and visitors were doing their best to cool down during the third of what could be a six-day stretch of 90plus temperatures. Mayor Michelle Wu extended a previously announced heat emergency in the city through Sunday.
Josh Austin and his wife Michelle traveled down from New Hampshire with their two young daughters to visit the New England Aquarium and enjoy one such splash pad.
“I'm sure there's some aspect of this heat wave that is a result of global warming — higher temperatures for longer periods of time,” said Josh, 40, a sustainability manager.
“But I think it's also just typical of New England summers to get these warm stretches.”
Massachusetts House and Senate lawmakers approved a compromise bill on Thursday that mandates some of the steps the state needs to take to meet a goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Nancy Cahill also took her young grandsons to the aquarium, stopping by a splash pad on the Rose Kennedy Greenway afterward.
“We are very fortunate that we have access to pools,” said Cahill, 63, who lives in Wakefield, about 15 miles north of the city. “We're also fortunate because we have air conditioning. I feel bad for those people who don't have that right now.”
In the Tidewater area of southeast Virginia, temperatures were expected to reach nearly the century mark, but humidity will push the heat index beyond 105 degrees, said meteorologist Tim Gingrich.