North-west US on alert as mercury soars amid historic heatwave
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A boy cooling off at a water fountain in Portland, Oregon, on Saturday. Residents were warned of "life-threatening" heat.
PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
WASHINGTON • A historic heatwave is baking the US Pacific North-west, with temperatures pushing above 40 deg C, prompting local officials to warn residents to take precautions and power companies to ask users to conserve energy.
All of Washington and Oregon and parts of Idaho, Wyoming and California were under an excessive heat warning on Saturday as temperatures were to soar almost 17 deg C above average throughout the region during the weekend and through next week, the National Weather Service (NWS) said.
"This event will likely be one of the most extreme and prolonged heatwaves in the recorded history of the Inland North-west," the NWS said.
Across the region, dozens of daily record-high temperatures are expected to be set, with monthly and even all-time records in jeopardy of falling, the service said.
In Seattle, temperatures were to reach 37 deg C on Saturday and an all-time record-breaking 41.1 deg C today.
Officials there told the city's 725,000 residents to hydrate, keep blinds closed, use fans and to go to city cooling centres if needed.
"It's unbearable out there. I set out to run an errand at the post office and ended up taking a Lyft home. Even with sunscreen, shade breaks and hydrating, I almost passed out," a Twitter user said on the social media platform.
Officials in Multnomah county, Oregon, which encompasses the state's largest city of Portland, warned that highs well above 37.7 deg C could cause public transportation delays, strain emergency medical services and cause power outages.
In a short video posted online, the county's health officer, Dr Jennifer Vines, urged residents to go to a cooling centre if they do not have air-conditioning, warning of "life-threatening" heat.
Pacific Power, which serves 10 states, said in a statement that it did not anticipate heat-related service interruptions, but asked customers to use less energy during the heatwave.
The NWS also warned that the dry and breezy conditions could also lead to elevated fire weather concerns through early this week.
REUTERS