Heat wave hits North America

Over the last week at least 24 people have died from a heat wave that has hit North America. At one point the National Weather Service had placed 33 states under heat advisories and warnings. The 33 states cover almost 1,600 miles from western Nebraska to southern Maine. Authorities estimate the number of Americans affected by the heat advisories at 100 million people.

17 states reached the 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8 Celsius) mark on Tuesday, while over 40 topped 90 degrees (32.2 C). Several cities have set new record temperatures including Newark, in New Jersey, reaching a temperature of 108F (42C) on Friday and Toronto, Canada’s most populous city, which reached a temperature of 100.2 F (38 C).

The most severe heat wave in modern North American history took place during the Great Depression in 1936. The heat that summer was blamed for more than 5,000 deaths in the US and Canada.