Heat wave keeps Midwest in its grip

CHICAGO (AP) — The swimming season kicked into high gear early in a large swath of the U.S., as a heat wave pushed temperatures into the 90s and beyond on Wednesday in a stretch spanning from northern Florida to the Great Lakes and covering about a third of the country’s population.

The National Weather Service maintained an excessive heat warning through Wednesday evening for most of Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, which have been dealing with the sticky humidity and soaring temperatures since Tuesday. And the heat advisory in place for the Midwest and South stretched all the way eastward to the South Carolina shoreline.

Meteorologists warned that the high temperatures could be dangerous ord eadly for some people and advised residents to stay hydrated, remain indoors if possible and take precautions if they must be outside. Driving home the point, the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office tweeted Wednesday that it was investigating the deaths of an 89-year-old man and 39-year-old woman for “probable” connections to the heat.

“There are a lot of vulnerable populations exposed to this heat,” University of Georgia meteorology professor Marshall Shepherd said. “I am particularly concerned about the elevated nighttime temperature. That’s what kills people if they are not adequately prepared or have the appropriate resources. Hurricanes get the headlines, but heat kills more people every year in the U.S.”

As temperatures soared into the 90s in downtown Indianapolis on Wednesday, Gary Lightle kneeled on the hot steps of the Indiana World War Memorial to replace some aging caulking. He wore a widebrimmed hat and began his work day around 7 a.m. but said the heat dictates how long he stays outside.

“Yesterday it just got so miserable that we decided to quit at 3,” he said.

Foreman CJ Thrasher’s workday starts even earlier — around 5 a.m., he said, to beat the heat — with usually a 2 p.m. wrap-up.

Thrasher worked quickly to apply glue to the side of a stone wall on W Ohio Street. In the heat, the sealant stiffens faster than in cooler weather, he said, so the glue becomes less malleable.