Phoenix hits 100 degrees Fahrenheit for a record 100th straight day as heat scorches western U.S.
It's always hot this time of year in central Arizona, but 2024 is proving to be an endless summer with especially high temperatures in Phoenix. On Tuesday, the city hit its 100th straight day with at least 100 degree temperatures. That's long since shattered the record of 76 days in a row set back in 1993, according to data from the National Weather Service.
"That is definitely an eye-catching number," NWS meteorologist Sean Benedict said.
The temperature hit 102 F in Phoenix on May 27 and has made it to triple digits every day since. In 2023, Phoenix — also known as the "hottest large city in America" — endured a record 31 consecutive days of 110-plus degree weather in July.
Benedict said that long streaks of desert heat usually are broken up by rain, but the monsoon hasn't delivered much. The persistent heat also got an early start, with the triple-digit days already piling up in May.
It doesn't look like a break is coming any time soon.
Unseasonably high temperatures are expected this week across the western U.S., with an excessive heat warning forecast for Wednesday through Friday in Arizona cities including Phoenix and Lake Havasu City, as well as Las Vegas and other parts of Nevada, including Laughlin and Pahrump.
Public health officials in Arizona's Maricopa County — where Phoenix is located, the hottest metro area in the U.S. — say that as of Aug. 24 there had been 150 heat-related deaths confirmed so far this year, with another 443 under investigation. Arizona has the country's only chief heat officer. Dr. Eugene Livar saw a rollout of a new extreme heat preparedness plan and used social media to urge people to take caution during hot days and to avoid hiking during peak temperatures. The Arizona Department Forestry and Fire Management also issued fire warnings for several counties to reduce incidents of wildfires.
There were 645 heat-related deaths last year in the county of some 4.5 million people. Heat has hit homeless people in Phoenix particularly hard. Non-profit group Circle the City, which works in multiple cities and hospitals and treats about 9,000 people annually, introduced its IV rehydration program in Phoenix. Nearly half the 645 people who died due to heat in 2023 were homeless.
Pretty much any way the data is parsed, 2024 marks another record-breaking summer of heat in Phoenix. It's been the hottest meteorological summer, which includes the months June, July and August. And it's the same story throughout the western U.S. with several locations in California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah and New Mexico setting records or coming close.
Heat hits parts of the western U.S.
Across California, red flag warnings for increased wildfire risk were issued. A blaze that broke out Monday and was fed by erratic winds knocked out power and prompted evacuation orders for more than 500 residents of a remote forest community near Lake Tahoe. The Bear Fire about 20 miles north of Truckee grew to more than 2 square miles by Tuesday morning, with zero containment.
The California desert communities of Palm Springs, Twentynine Palms, Needles and Barstow will also heat up, with highs of up to 118 F in Death Valley's Furnace Creek expected at week's end.
Cooling centers were set up across Los Angeles County, where officials urged residents to check on neighbors who are elderly, unwell or otherwise vulnerable amid soaring temperatures. "Hot days aren't just uncomfortable — they can be dangerous," said L.A. County Health Officer Muntu Davis. Since July 3, the city has activated cooling centers for 19 days, officials said.
There's no respite from the heat for outdoor vendors. It's the same story for plenty of other people in the Phoenix area, particularly construction workers and landscapers.
Ramiro Lopez has been doing landscaping in suburban Phoenix for five years and says each summer feels hotter than the last. Between jobs, he takes breaks in his air-conditioned truck to stave off the heat, but the past three months have been a grind.
"I've learned to drink lots of sports drinks and make sure I'm done by 1 p.m.," Lopez said. "Otherwise, it's just too much."
In Phoenix, there have been 37 nights this summer that didn't cool off below 90 F, another record.
There have also been 54 days of 110 degree temperatures, which is just one day away from breaking the record of 55 days last year. That number could be broken later this week. The heat is tough for everyone, but is particularly difficult for low-income areas.
"Not being able to cool off at night can affect people's health because heat can accumulate in the body," Arizona State University climatologist Erinanne Saffell wrote in an email response. "Folks should make sure to stay cool and hydrate."