Heatwave sweeps through the southwest of the USA: Arizona, California and Nevada on alert

Updated on June 7, 2024, 08:02 IST

Record temperatures were reached in the southwestern United States on Thursday, rising to over 43 degrees Celsius in some areas. The first heat wave of the year is expected to last at least another day. A heat warning has been issued for half of Arizona, California and Nevada.

Heatwave in the USA. (Image credit: UnSplash)

Record temperatures were reached in the southwestern United States on Thursday, with some areas exceeding 43 degrees Celsius. The first heat wave of the year is expected to continue in the region for at least another day.

Although the official start of summer was still two weeks away, a heat warning was in effect for about half of Arizona, California and Nevada, announced by the National Weather Service, which was extended until Friday evening.

At a campaign rally of likely Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump in Phoenix in the late afternoon, 11 people fell ill with heat exhaustion and were taken to the hospital, where they were treated and released, the fire department said.

The weather service in Phoenix spoke of “dangerously hot conditions” in the city.

And in Las Vegas, Clark County Fire Rescue has responded to at least 12 calls for heat-related injuries since midnight Wednesday. Nine of those calls resulted in a patient being hospitalized. A county spokesman said the number is likely higher, as heat can play a role in other calls, including alcohol poisoning or reports of fainting, dizziness or nausea.

New record highs on Thursday included 45 °C (113 °F) in Phoenix, beating the previous record of 44 °C (111 °F) set in 2016, and 44 °C (111 °F) in Las Vegas, beating the 43 °C (110 °F) last reached in 2010. Other areas in Arizona, California and Nevada also beat the records by several degrees.

Even further north, at higher elevations, the heat has arrived weeks earlier than usual in areas that are normally 12 degrees cooler. That includes Reno, Nevada, where normal highs for this time of year of 80 degrees Fahrenheit rose to a record-breaking 99 degrees Fahrenheit on Thursday.

The National Weather Service in Reno is forecasting a slight cooling for this weekend, but only by a few degrees. In central and southern Arizona, this still means triple-digit highs, even up to 43 degrees Celsius.

Record temperatures were reached in the southwestern United States on Thursday, rising to over 43 degrees Celsius in some areas. The first heat wave of the year is expected to last at least another day. A heat warning has been issued for half of Arizona, California and Nevada.

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