Las Vegas could break its all-time high of 117 degrees on Sunday, as millions of people across the United States suffer from a week-long heat wave.
Las Vegas city officials asked residents and visitors to stay indoors if possible between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekends.
An influx of elderly residents and dehydrated construction workers has hit the city’s emergency rooms in recent days as the city burns under a dome of intense heat.
The National Weather Service has placed more than 90 million people under heat warnings.
“We’ve been talking about this building heat wave for a week now, and now the most intense period is starting,” the National Weather Service said Friday.
Hundreds of firefighters were dispatched to battle three separate brush fires burning across Riverside County, southeast of Los Angeles, by Friday afternoon.
Las Vegas could break its all-time high of 117 degrees on Sunday
“Several record high temperatures are likely and air quality issues will be common across multiple regions of the United States,” the service said in a bulletin.
Adding: ‘Temperatures will reach levels that pose a health risk and could be potentially fatal for anyone without effective cooling and/or adequate hydration,’ it said.
Blistering heat is forecast to intensify over the weekend for Nevada, Arizona and California, with desert temperatures forecast to exceed 120 degrees.
Dr. Matthew Levy of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine told CNN, ‘Make no mistake about it: this heat is deadly, and prolonged exposure to it is deadly.’
By Friday afternoon, three separate brush fires had spread across Riverside County, southeast of Los Angeles, and hundreds of firefighters were still battling the blazes Saturday.
The fires are within 40 miles of each other and have prompted evacuation orders for nearly 1,000 families.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said no casualties have been reported so far.
Death Valley National Park in California and Saguaro National Park in Arizona both issued warnings not to visit after 10 a.m. local time.
The National Weather Service has placed more than 90 million people under heat warnings
Residents and visitors file past misters in Las Vegas, where authorities have advised people not to go outside between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekends.
The California wildfires are within 40 miles of each other and have prompted evacuation orders for nearly 1,000 families.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said there were no immediate reports of casualties.
Vermont on the East Coast is dealing with the effects of historic flooding, with at least one person dead
This week, parts of Vermont received as much as two months of rain due to storms
Texas authorities at Big Bend National Park said: ‘These are extremely dangerous/fatal temperatures! Hikers should stay off trails in the afternoon. Staying hydrated. Limit your exposure.’
It comes after a stepfather and one of his stepsons died while hiking in a Texas park in extreme heat last month.
A 57-year-old woman also died while trying to hike eight miles in Grand Canyon National Park during 100-degree heat in early July.
Phoenix also saw temperatures break records, and Friday marked its 15th straight day of 110 degrees or higher.
“This weekend will be some of the most severe and hot conditions we’ve seen,” David Hondula, the city’s chief heat officer, told NPR.
‘I think it’s time for maximum community vigilance,’ he added.
Vermont on the East Coast is dealing with the effects of historic flooding, with at least one person dead.
Another woman in upstate New York was killed when floodwaters washed away Fort Montgomery, a small Hudson River community about 45 miles north of New York City.
Officials are calling this week’s flooding Vermont’s worst natural disaster since the 1927 flood
Residents in Vermont have experienced devastating damage to their homes and property this week
People in Las Vegas are trying to cool down as an intense heat dome hits the city
Storms dumped as much as two months of rain in a few days in some parts of the state this week.
Officials called this week’s flooding the state’s worst natural disaster since the 1927 flood.
Along with roads, homes and businesses, farms took a big hit, with the floods starting only after many farmers had endured hard frosts in May.
State Agriculture Secretary Anson Tebbetts said at a news conference that it is expected to ‘destroy a large portion of our produce and livestock feed.’
Vermont emergency management officials rushed to help communities and National Guard troops were also dispatched to help with relief efforts.
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