Deadly Heat Grips Central United States

Killer Heat Already Claimed Dozens of Lives

Deadly heat has taken over weather conditions in the central United States; forecast to last through next week

Heat warnings, watches and advisories have been issued from Texas to the Canadian border and from the High Plains to the western Great Lakes.

Deadly heat already claimed dozens of lives and has now taken over weather conditions in the central United States; forecast to last well into next week. NWS has issued heat warnings, watches and advisories have been issued from Texas to the Canadian border and from the High Plains to the western Great Lakes. Click image to enlarge. 

U.S. Weather Hazards Map. Click image to enter interactive portal.

Weather highlights for the central United States include:

• Dangerous heat beginning to build from the southern and central Plains to the North
• Severe weather threat from the central and northern Plains into the Upper Mississippi Valley [Source: NWS]

Excerpts from NWS Weather Forecast

• Heat and humidity that has stagnated across the southern Plains will spread through the central Plains into the Dakotas, today, bringing a possibility of triple-digit high temperatures through the weekend and into the first half of next week.
• Excessive Heat Warnings are in effect for parts of Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and South Dakota.
• Heat Advisories are in effect for parts of Oklahoma and Texas.
• Excessive Heat Watches will go into effect Saturday for portions of the central and northern Plains and the Midwest, including the Dakotas, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin.

• . . . the heat will be relentless over a 16-state area in the heart of the country, lasting into the latter half of next week. The central Plains will see excessive heat continue from July 17-21 and triple-digit highs will bake the southern half of the Atlantic Coast July 19-27.

Official Death Toll

• As of July 14, 2011, the official toll from the killer heat waves in the U.S. was reported at 39 fatalities.

U.S. Flood Map

U.S. Flood Map: 88 sites were at Major, Moderate or Minor Flooding stage as of 07/16/2011 at 09:01:15 am EDT / 07/16/2011 13:01:15UTC

76 sites weer at Near Flood stage as of 07/16/2011 at 09:01:15 am EDT.

In Mega Heatwaves Could Kill Thousands in the U.S. posted on July 11, 2011 FIRE-EARTH warned:

Deadly heatwaves of unprecedented intensity could strike the U.S. in 2011 and beyond, claiming tens of thousands of lives and affecting millions more: FIRE-EARTH Climate Model

Please cite FIRE-EARTH as the source for above forecast, if you’re copying/re-writing this information.

Related Links

• US Weather: SW, SE Continue to Boil
• Entering 2nd Stage of New Climatic Extremes
• Dangerous heat spreads to Mid-Atlantic
• Dangerous heat, exceptional drought, severe storms, major flooding
• Mega Heatwaves Could Kill Thousands in the U.S.
• Back to the Primordial Future
• Brace for the Worst Ever
• WARNING: Global Disasters to Intensify
• Global Climate Extremes INTENSIFYING

Climate-Related Links

• U.S. Climate June: Extremes of Temp and Precipitation
• Epic flood threats through summer as more rain predicted
• Major Dust Storm Moves Across Arizona
• NO CHANCE: Malnourished kids fleeing Somalia’s drought

External Links

• Heat Safety Information
• Weekend high/low temperature forecasts for central United States

US Weather: SW, SE Continue to Boil

Dangerously hot and humid conditions, flooding and severe weather

Unrelenting heat to continue unabated in the SW and south-central Plains and parts of the Southeast: NWS

Excessive heat is forecast to return “with a vengeance through much of next week.” The NWS hazards assessment map indicates excessive heat would return to two regions, covering parts of at least 24 states. Click image to enlarge.

Triple digit temperatures with heat index of about 120 degrees (49ºC) forecast across the South Thursday, with “no end in sight for the blazing temperatures.”

“Excessive Heat Watches and Warnings and Heat Advisories are in effect over a dozen states and high temperatures are expected to spread again across more of the South.” Forecasters said.

Excessive heat is forecast to return “with a vengeance through much of next week” to two regions covering at least 24 states. See above map.

Thursday’s weather hazards include:

• Dangerously hot and humid conditions across the Southeast
• Flooding continues and worsens in some parts of the northern and central Plains
• Severe weather will be a threat in the north-central Plains and the Upper Midwest

High temperatures for today in parts of the country hoping for relief include:

• Texas: Dallas 101, San Antonio 99, Waco 104, Wichita Falls 106
• Oklahoma: Oklahoma City 101, Tulsa 100, Woodward 101
• Kansas: Dodge City 100, Garden City 100, Goodland 94, Hill City 99, Topeka 94, Wichita 99
• Missouri: Kansas City 91
• Arkansas: Fort Smith 99, Pine Bluff 94
• Louisiana: Shreveport 100
• Mississippi: Tupelo 96

Daily high temperatures through Monday would be in triple digits (NWS forecast), including:

• 105 degrees or more in Wichita Falls, 102 or higher in Waco
• 100-102 in Wichita, 100-105 in Dodge City, 102 and higher in Hill City

U.S. Weather Hazards Map. Click image to enter interactive portal.

Related Links

• Entering 2nd Stage of New Climatic Extremes
• Dangerous heat spreads to Mid-Atlantic
• Dangerous heat, exceptional drought, severe storms, major flooding
• Mega Heatwaves Could Kill Thousands in the U.S.
• Back to the Primordial Future
• Brace for the Worst Ever
• WARNING: Global Disasters to Intensify
• Global Climate Extremes INTENSIFYING

Climate-Related Links

• U.S. Climate June: Extremes of Temp and Precipitation
• Epic flood threats through summer as more rain predicted
• Major Dust Storm Moves Across Arizona
• NO CHANCE: Malnourished kids fleeing Somalia’s drought

External Links

• Heat Safety Information

Entering 2nd Stage of New Climatic Extremes

Accelerating Toward Extremes

The second stage of  a new phase of climatic extremes has begun: FIRE-EARTH Models

United States: Killer heat to persist, as death toll climbs to at least 42

Worst of the heat grips parts of Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas

Heat Advisories and Excessive Heat Warnings remain in effect today for parts of Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia: NWS

The NWS hazards assessment map indicates excessive heat would persist in a 15-state area from North Dakota to southern Texas. The impacted area includes parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee and Mississippi. Click image to enlarge.

Killer Heat Stats

• U.S. heat wave has killed at least 39 people, as of July 13.

• About half the U.S. population (at least 150 million people) have been affected by the killer heat.
• In Wichita, Kansas the temperature exceeded 100 degrees for the 21st consecutive day.
• In Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, temperatures hovered around 100 degrees for the 15th consecutive day.
• Phoenix has experienced 34 consecutive days  at 100+ degrees.
• Dallas has seen 12 days at 100+ degrees.
• The searing heat has killed tens of thousands of turkeys and chickens in Kansas and North Carolina. (Source)
• Temperature records have been matched or shattered about 700 times since July 1.

Severe Thunderstorm

SPC has received 118 (filtered) reports of severe weather for Tuesday, including 3 tornadoes in northeastern Colorado, 89 reports of high winds and 26 reports of large hail. “There were numerous reports of winds in the 55-73 mph range reported in Illinois, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma,” SPC said.

“A severe thunderstorm in southeastern Wyoming dumped prodigious amounts of hail on Cheyenne and the surrounding area. The storm produced quarter-sized to golf ball sized hail that fell continuously for more than 35 minutes beginning around 5:25 p.m. CST. Accompanied by 1.46 inches of rain that fell in about 30 minutes, the hail formed drifts more than a foot deep. There was considerable hail damage to the city, including broken windshields on numerous vehicles. The heavy rain and hail created flash flood conditions in much of southwestern and western Cheyenne and Warren Air Force Base.” NWS said.

Flooding

Severe weather in the Missouri River Basin  could intensify flooding problems from the Dakotas to Missouri.

Barrier and levee breaches have occurred in Carroll County, Missouri, about 60 miles east of Kansas City, threatening dozens of communities, according to reports.

At least 12 square miles of farmland were submerged in Carroll County, after a primary levee breach along the Missouri River on Monday.

Flooding is ongoing at at least 88 stream gauge sites in the United States, mostly along the Missouri River, as of posting. Another 84 sites were Near Flood.

U.S. Flood map [July 14, 2011]

Sites at Near Flood stage.

Related Links

• Dangerous heat spreads to Mid-Atlantic
• Dangerous heat, exceptional drought, severe storms, major flooding
• Mega Heatwaves Could Kill Thousands in the U.S.
• Back to the Primordial Future
• Brace for the Worst Ever
• WARNING: Global Disasters to Intensify
• Global Climate Extremes INTENSIFYING

Climate-Related Links

• U.S. Climate June: Extremes of Temp and Precipitation
• Epic flood threats through summer as more rain predicted
• Major Dust Storm Moves Across Arizona
• NO CHANCE: Malnourished kids fleeing Somalia’s drought