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| source: EPA |
In the USA deaths due to heat or heat contributing to death are increasing [chart above]. AP reports that more than 2300 people died of exposure to excessive heat in 2023, the highest number in 45 years. Health experts think that number is only a fraction of deaths in which heat played a role. The same or higher rate of death can be expected in 2024 since May is already breaking heat records. Almost three-quarters of heat related deaths have occurred in five southern states: Arizona (875), Texas (455), Nevada (226) Florida (84) and Louisiana (85).
Last year the United States experienced the most heat waves since 1936. The record heat of 2023 killed more people than the heat waves experienced in 1980 and 1995. Deaths are up due in part to shifts in population to cities, aging, and better reporting, but most experts think that climate change is playing the leading role. A taste of the future? People living in 2040 may look back on cooler times in 2024.