Prolonged heatwaves pushed death tolls to new levels this year in Maryland, which recorded its highest number of heat-related deaths with more than a month left of summer.
At least 70 deaths across the U.S. were linked to the heat domes that covered much of the country in July, according to an analysis by The Washington Post. July was the hottest month across the United States since the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration began keeping records 132 years ago.
An August 2024 study that analyzed deaths occurring between 1999 and 2023 using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated a 117 percent increase in the number of heat-related deaths, totalling 21,518 during the reporting period.
In Maryland, the toll has been especially stark this summer.
As of Aug. 12, the state health department’s dashboard showed 52 Marylanders have died of heat-related causes since May, up from the 50 reported a week earlier. The latest count surpassed every full season shown in state data going back to 2021. Forty-five deaths occurred in July alone, more than the annual total in any of the previous five years. Older Marylanders accounted for the majority of the deaths, with people 65 and older representing 62 percent of the total.
