SerpApi.Org
As daytime temperatures routinely soar above 115 degrees in the Phoenix area, officials are reporting a drop in heat-related deaths for the first time in years.
It is part of an effort by elected officials to address the needs of Arizona's most vulnerable people, who are often exposed to extreme and often lethal heat. Phoenix established an office dedicated to addressing sustained periods of extreme heat in the Sonoran Desert, where temperatures can be searing for weeks in a row.
Kate Gallego, mayor of Phoenix, has helped create a bend in the curve of the growing number of heat-related deaths over the last two years.
"We saw a reduction in the number of times we needed to use our cold water immersion treatment protocol for very severe street heat stroke patients," Gallego reported.
While the number of deaths has dropped or remained steady, Gallego stressed heat-related emergencies still constitute a public health crisis.
Phoenix also suffers from what is known as the "heat island effect," when concrete and asphalt absorb the unrelenting heat all day and cannot release it before sunrise, which means overnight temperatures can remain near 100 degrees.
Rep. Nancy Gutierrez, D-Tucson, assistant minority leader of the Arizona House and a former educator, said she is hearing from teachers in the northern part of the state who say the heat is causing an uptick in absences. The teachers also cite a lack of concentration in the classroom and skirmishes between students.
"Northern Arizona temperatures have been on the rise over the past several years. Many of those buildings and homes do not have air conditioning, because in the past, it wasn't necessary. Now they have classrooms that are sweltering and there is no way to cool them," Gutierrez pointed out.
Sen. Lauren Kuby, D-Tempe, said the extreme heat crisis intertwines with a lack of available housing. Finding an apartment or rental home is becoming more difficult and expensive, especially for low-income Arizonans.
"Every Arizonan deserves their home and their rental home, their apartment to be safe to live in and protect them from dangerous indoor temperatures during extreme heat," Kuby asserted. "Safe housing is no longer just a housing issue, it's a public health issue, it's a climate issue."
The World Health Organization reported heat stress remains a leading cause of weather-related deaths and can exacerbate underlying medical conditions, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, mental health and asthma.
