Over 400 die in Phoenix area from heat-related causes this year, setting record for 7th consecutive year
The 425 confirmed heat-related deaths match last year’s record total, which was 25% higher than 2021’s previous record, according to the Maricopa County of Public Health. It marks the seventh consecutive year of record heat-related deaths since the county began tracking in 2006.
Preventing heat exhaustion and heat stroke
Dr. Richard Bradley, an emergency medical services physician, discusses best practices to prevent heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
PHOENIX – Over 400 people have died due to heat-related causes in the Phoenix area this year in a record-breaking year for a town already known for relentless triple-digit heat.
The number of deaths is expected to climb higher as more heat deaths are investigated.
The 425 confirmed heat-related deaths match last year’s record total, which was 25% higher than 2021’s previous record, according to the Maricopa County of Public Health. It marks the seventh-consecutive year of record heat-related deaths since the county began tracking in 2006.
FILE APACHE JUNCTION, ARIZONA - AUGUST 04: A damaged saguaro cactus remains standing next to a dead saguaro decaying in the Sonoran Desert on August 4, 2023 near Apache Junction, Arizona.
(Mario Tama / Getty Images)
This year will likely eventually break the tie as 199 possible heat-related deaths remain under investigation, according to MCDPH medical director Dr. Rebecca Sunenshine.
Even as the calendar wades deeper into October, triple-digit heat remains in the Southwest. Phoenix reached 104 degrees on Thursday, breaking the record high for the day. The 131 days above 100 degrees are the third-most on record.
Earlier this summer, Phoenix spent nearly all of July with high temperatures at or above 110 degrees, smashing their record for consecutive 110-degree days at 31. When factoring both the high and low temperatures, the average temperature in July reached 102.74 – making Phoenix the first major city in the U.S. ever to average 100 degrees or more for a month.
PHOENIX BECOMES FIRST MAJOR US CITY TO AVERAGE OVER 100 DEGREES IN A MONTH
A billboard displays a temperature of 118 degrees Fahrenheit (48 degrees Celcius) during a record heat wave in Phoenix, Arizona on July 18, 2023.
(Patrick T. Fallon / AFP / Getty Images)
Overall, it was their hottest meteorological summer on record, with an average high temperature of 109.2 degrees, breaking the previous record of 108.5 degrees set in 2020.
"Even with extreme heat like we saw this summer, these deaths are preventable," Sunenshine said. "This tragic record reminds us that as a community, we have more work to do to prevent these deaths."
HOW TO TELL THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HEAT EXHAUSTION AND HEATSTROKE
Temperatures in the autumn heat wave were set to reach triple digits again Friday and Saturday before cooling down next week.
"Maricopa County residents and visitors should continue to practice heat safety and check on neighbors, even this late in the season, because heat illness and deaths can occur all the way into November due to rising temperatures," added Dr. Sunenshine. "It’s not just extreme heat days that can turn into a tragedy."