Hundreds Dead in North America Due to Record-Breaking Heatwave

[Photo by AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] Due to record-breaking heatwaves, it is estimated that hundreds of people have died in the North American region over the past few days.

According to the Associated Press on the 30th of last month (local time), Lisa Lapointe, the chief coroner of British Columbia (BC) in western Canada, stated that 486 deaths were reported over five days since the 25th of last month. This number is nearly three times the usual 165 deaths. The sharp increase in deaths amid the ongoing heatwave is likely related to the extreme heat.

Chief Coroner Lapointe said in a statement, "It is too early to accurately state the number of heat-related deaths," but added, "It appears that deaths have significantly increased due to the extreme heat."

The Vancouver Police Department in BC reported that 98 people, including 53 on the 29th, died suddenly over the past few days. Normally, the number of sudden deaths reported to Vancouver police is only 3 to 4 per day. Steve Addison, a spokesperson for the Vancouver Police Department, said in a statement, "Vancouver has never experienced such a heatwave, and unfortunately, dozens of people are losing their lives because of it."

Deaths are also surging in the United States. A health official from Multnomah County, Oregon, which includes Portland, said that 45 people aged between 44 and 97 died from heat-related illnesses in the area. Across Oregon, there were only 12 heat-related deaths from 2017 to 2019, but the number has surged amid the recent heatwave. On the 28th of last month, the peak of the heatwave, 506 heat illness patients, including 251 on that day alone, visited emergency rooms and urgent care centers in Oregon.

The Washington State Department of Health reported three heat-related deaths on the 27th and 28th of last month. Corey Fortner, a spokesperson for the Washington State Department of Health, said that 676 people visited emergency rooms with heat-related symptoms from the 25th to the 27th. On the 28th, the peak of the heatwave, 688 people visited emergency rooms in a single day.

Portland recorded a historic high temperature of 46.7 degrees Celsius on the 28th of last month. On the same day, Seattle's temperature rose to 42.2 degrees Celsius, breaking the previous record of 40.0 degrees set just the day before on the 27th.

The city of Spokane, east of Seattle, reached a high of 42.8 degrees Celsius, breaking the all-time record of 42.2 degrees set in August 1961. Omak in Washington State also rose to 47.2 degrees Celsius, surpassing the 45.6 degrees record set in July 1928.

In BC, Canada, Lytton's highest temperature broke the Canadian record for three consecutive days, reaching 49.5 degrees Celsius on the 29th.

The heatwave spread not only across the West but also to the northeastern United States. Heat domes formed simultaneously on both coasts of the U.S. continent, bringing record-breaking heat from the Great Lakes region to Maine, the northernmost part of the U.S. East Coast.

On the 29th, temperatures in Boston, Massachusetts, and Hartford, Connecticut, rose to 37.2 degrees Celsius, and on the 30th, heat warnings were issued to 11 million residents across Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.