HUNDREDS dead as record-breaking heat wave grips Canada, US
UPDATES FARTHER DOWN: Just in – probably true – probably related to the extreme heat: Scores dead as record-breaking heat wave grips Canada, US
At least 134 people have died suddenly since Friday in the Vancouver area, according to figures released by the city police department and the Royal Canadian Mounted police.
The Vancouver Police Department alone said it had responded to more than 65 sudden deaths since Friday, with the vast majority “related to the heat.”
The deaths came as Canada set a new all-time high temperature record for a third day in a row Tuesday, reaching 121 degrees Fahrenheit (49.5 degrees Celsius) in Lytton, British Columbia, about 155 miles (250 kilometers) east of Vancouver, the country’s weather service, Environment Canada, reported.
“Vancouver has never experienced heat like this, and sadly dozens of people are dying because of it,” police sergeant Steve Addison said.
Other local municipalities have said they too have responded to many sudden death calls, but have yet to release tolls.
I was just speculating on this in the comments. I’ve heard reports of animals dying in large numbers, but didn’t go looking for the stories. I did expect humans to start dying in bigger numbers then usual.
More than 230 deaths reported in British Columbia amid historic heat wave
More than 25 people have died in 24 hours in Burnaby, many due to heat, police say
UPDATE: NEARLY 500 DEAD SO FAR – Mapping the hottest temperatures around the world
There was an extreme heat event in 2003 (or was it 2004?) in Europe that caused the deaths of an extra 20,000 or so people. Mostly old people trapped in institutions, I believe.
One ‘notable oops moment’ occurred when the French has to start taking nuclear generators off line because the cooling water was in short supply and too hot.
It’s much the same with Covid: live in an institution (overcrowded, artificial environment, locked doors and ‘security’) and risk death.
Humans are well adapted to living in cold conditions; not so much extreme heat.
I read a book about ‘The Deer People’ of northwest Canada a few years ago. There were few trees, so any piece of wood bigger than a human leg was considered valuable. They had only two options for clothing, the summer version which was made of deerskin, and the winter version, which was also made of deerskin and was worn on top of the summer layer. When winter came they ‘hibernated” in igloos.
It is conjectured that industrial civilisation had to evolve in the cooler latitudes because it was too darned hot to attempt it in the tropics.
POSH -Port Out, Starboard Home, the preferred berthing for wealthy British people engaged in the looting of India in the 19th and early 20th centuries. And a retreat in the hills when it got too hot for ‘civilized’ people. With a punka walla powering a hanging cloth cooling system.
It was only the advent of air conditioning in buildings and vehicles that made living in the semi-deserts and the better regions of clammy southern states of the US fashionable.
It’s going to be very ‘interesting’ when the fires start.
This is also going to be very ‘interesting’:
‘US grain stocks for corn, soy and wheat fell by almost -50% in June from their March levels, a decline that was more than the one expected. When they are released in a few days, world food prices are expected to have risen sharply again.’
https://www.interest.co.nz/news/111095/us-jobs-data-average-factories-facing-huge-cost-pressure-us-grain-stocks-halve-china
Multnomah County Medical Examiner Identifies 45 Heat-Related Deaths
How did a small town in Canada become one of the hottest places on Earth?
Don’t even need to read the article to know “how”.
Wildfire forces evacuation for British Columbia town that hit a record 121 degrees – “The whole town is on fire”