A dangerous heat wave is tightening its grip on the East Coast, with the worst conditions arriving as millions prepare to celebrate the Fourth of July outdoors.
While record-breaking heat scorched parts of the Midwest on Wednesday, the most intense heat is expected to shift into the Interstate 95 corridor Thursday and Friday. Temperatures are forecast to climb into the upper 90s and low 100s from Washington, DC, to Boston, with humidity pushing “feels like” temperatures as high as 110 degrees or more.
The timing couldn’t be worse. The heat is expected to peak during one of the busiest travel and outdoor celebration periods of the year, prompting cities to expand cooling centers, shorten parade routes and activate emergency response plans ahead of America’s 250th birthday celebrations.
More than 160 million people are under a Level 3 of 4 “major” or Level 4 of 4 “extreme” heat risk through the end of the week, according to the National Weather Service. These categories are associated with a sharp increase in heat-related illnesses, especially during prolonged heat waves with little overnight relief.
The heat waves have been triggered by intense heat domes — stubborn areas of high pressure that lock hot air in place — and are clearly supercharged by global warming, experts say.
