The heatwave that has blanketed the Pacific Northwest and Canada is now blamed for hundreds of deaths. The AP reports, “Oregon health officials said more than 60 deaths have been tied to the heat, with the state’s largest county, Multnomah, blaming the weather for 45 deaths since temperatures spiked Friday. At least 20 deaths in Washington state have been linked to the heat, a number that was expected to rise.”
The preliminary cause of death is hyperthermia. Many of those who died were found alone, without air condition or a fan, according to the county.
For comparison: Oregon only saw 12 deaths between 2017-2019 from hyperthermia.— KGW News (@KGWNews) June 30, 2021
The Seattle Times adds, British Columbia’s chief coroner, Lisa Lapointe, said her office received reports of at least 486 ‘sudden and unexpected deaths’ between Friday and Wednesday. Normally, she said about 165 people die in the Canadian province over a five-day period.”
A reminder that Canada’s new high temperature of 121°F beats South America’s all-time high set in Rivadavia, Argentina in 1905 and Europe’s all-time high set in Athens in 1977.
And did I mention IT HAPPENED IN CANADA
— Bill Weir (@BillWeirCNN) July 1, 2021
NBC News writes:
This heat wave is affecting a region used to cool temperatures. Among the top 15 metro areas, more Seattle residents live without air conditioning than the other 14. The average high in Seattle in June is 71 degrees.
“We cannot just turn up the AC,” Washington Gov. Jay Inslee wrote in an op-ed Tuesday in the Seattle Times. “We have to turn up our level of efforts fighting the underlying cause of our changing world — climate change.”
Watch more from CBS News above.
