The Problem with Heat in the U.S. and Europe

Heat: A Major Killer Espanol NOAA's Watch, Warning, and Advisory Products for Extreme Heat Heat Index Information Heat Hazards Heat-Related Illness Symptoms and First Aid How Fast Can the Sun Heat A Car? Vehicle Related Heat Deaths Preparing for and Responding to Excessive Heat Events Heat is one of the leading weather-related killer in the United States, resulting in hundreds of fatalities each year. In the disastrous heat wave of 1980, more than 1,250 people died. In the heat wave of 1995 more than 700 deaths in the Chicago area were attributed to heat, making this the deadliest weather event in Chicago history. In August 2003, a record heat wave in Europe claimed an estimated 50,000 lives. North American summers are hot; most summers see heat waves in one or more parts of the United States. East of the Rockies, they tend to combine both high temperatures and high humidity, although some of the worst heat waves have been catastrophically dry.

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http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/heat/index.shtml