The death toll in the U.S. and Canada surges due to the worst heatwave on record Reuters

Authors: Moira Warburton and Sergio Olmos

Vancouver/Portland (Reuters)-A heat wave that broke the record for the highest temperatures recorded in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States has subsequently led to rising deaths as officials prepare to meet the threat of hotter weather and wildfires.

The most severe heat passed on Wednesday, but Oregon reported that 63 people died from the heat wave. Multnomah County, including Portland, has reported 45 deaths since Friday, and the county’s forensic examiner listed hyperthermia as the leading cause.

The statement said that by comparison, from 2017 to 2019, only 12 people died in the state of Oregon from high temperatures. The Oregon Department of Health stated that the number of visits reported by hospitals has surged by hundreds in recent days due to high temperature-related diseases across the state.

The BC Coroner Service said on Wednesday that in British Columbia, at least 486 people died suddenly within five days, almost three times the normal number of deaths in the province during this period.

“This is a real health crisis, highlighting the lethality of extreme heat waves,” Multnomah County Health Officer Dr. Jennifer Waynes said in a statement. “As our summer continues to get warmer, I doubt we will face this kind of incident again.”

David Phillips, a Canadian senior climate scientist on environment and climate change, said that the thermal dome is a weather phenomenon that traps heat and prevents other weather systems from entering. Record to Manitoba. A government agency.

“In some of these places, their (temperature) records are disappearing,” Phillips said. “It’s really spectacular, it’s unprecedented for us.”

Phillips said that it is not yet clear what triggered the dome, but given the duration of the heat wave and extreme conditions, climate change appears to be a contributing factor.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stopped to remember the dead and expressed concern about the fire threat during a speech in Ottawa on Wednesday.

Trudeau said: “In the past few years, we have seen more and more extreme weather events of this kind.” “In fact, we know that this heat wave will not be the last.”

In Washington, US President Joe Biden stated that climate change is driving a “dangerous fusion of extreme heat and prolonged droughts” and warned that the US is lagging behind in preparing for the possible record of forest fires this year.

Break the record

Lytton, a small town in central British Columbia, broke the record for the hottest temperature in Canadian history on Wednesday. As of Tuesday, the temperature was 49.6 degrees Celsius (121.28 degrees Fahrenheit). The previous highest temperature in Canada was known for its severe winter, which was 45 degrees Celsius, in Saskatchewan in 1937.

In the northwestern United States, temperatures in Washington and Oregon soared above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) over the weekend. Portland hit record highs for several days, including Sunday’s 116F (47C).

In Washington State, the media also reported a surge in hospitalizations related to high temperatures. The highest temperature on Tuesday in Chelan County, east of Seattle, was 119F (48C).

Due to the “imminent threat of wildfires,” Oregon Governor Kate Brown declared a state of emergency, and the National Weather Service in Portland issued a red flag warning to parts of the state that wind speeds might spread rapidly.

The Portland Fire Department prohibits the use of fireworks on the weekend of July 4, when Americans celebrate Independence Day.

Fire and melting ice (NYSE:) pose risks

According to a fire weather map from the Canadian Department of Natural Resources, most areas of Alberta and most areas of British Columbia and Saskatchewan are at extreme risk of wildfires.

Mike Flannigan, a professor of wildfire at the University of Alberta, said: “All the ingredients are there. This is a gunpowder barrel looking for sparks.”

However, according to government information, the Chilcotin area, located about 600 kilometers (370 miles) north of Vancouver, is in a flood warning state due to an “unprecedented” snow melting rate.

Adam Rysanek, assistant professor of environmental systems at the University of British Columbia, said: “These are the types of problems that will increasingly be faced in the coming years.”