2nd degree burns: But it's a dry heat.

[Cerridwen]

Please be careful if you come into the southwest during this latest heat-wave.

We're being warned of 2nd-degree burns should we go barefoot(?!) on the asphalt or concrete. Walking your dog on asphalt or concrete will possibly burn their pads. If you're walking with your child and the child falls...yeah, watch for the burns. It's quite ugly.

If you leave a child or pet in a vehicle, well, it's an ugly way to die.

I'll provide a link though no text from the article documenting those who have had to have skin grafts due to the heat absorbed by asphalt and/or concrete during our dry-heat 117 degree days. The reason there's no text is because this particular publication has gone after DU in its fervor to make profit from "intellectual property." I believe the link alone might be okay. http://www.reviewjournal.com/life/health/parched-throats-sizzling-asphalt-among-many-dangers-excessive-heat

It may feel comfortable, until the headaches start. The problem with the dry heat is you don't think you're in trouble because there is no sweat because it evaporates. It's very dangerous; and very quick. You'll dehydrate before you're aware of it and by then, it can be too late.

We hit 117 today and lost power for an hour; our grid can't support the load of unchecked, profit-driving building and expansion in the damned desert. We were lucky. Older parts of town?

Stay safe, hydrated, and cool out there.

Tomorrow, well, it's another day.

[truedelphi]

1. Stay well, Cerridwen

On really hot days here in California, I often would like to take the head of the person saying, "But it is a dry heat" and shove it in a 525% oven. That is a dry heat too!

We just had two days above 100% with the worst to come on Sunday and Monday!

Ugh.

[Cerridwen]

3. You stay well, too, truedelphi.

Though we've had these temperatures off and on my whole life here, this year it came earlier and hotter than I've seen in quite some time.

We're getting out of here as soon as my contract is up the end of August. We're heading for green with some seasons besides too hot and mildly annoying cold.

I know what you mean about the oven; though really, set it for the same temp as a closed car, 215 or so(?) and tell 'em to jump right in.

We've got Sunday and possibly Monday; we'll see. We're also getting "humidity" here; relative to the rest of the country, it is humid.

Just...take...care.

[longship]

2. Stay safe, yourself. I wish I could send you some cool.

High today and tomorrow here: mid 70's.

It's 66 now, going down to 56 by morning.

Rural west Michigan.

[Cerridwen]

6. Thanks, longship.

This is the time of year we "desert rats" hibernate. The rest of the "world" hibernates in the winter; we do so in the heat of the summer.

We're leaving the desert after this summer and I hope never to deal with this kind killing dry heat again. Even my desert-hot loving little terrier won't go out longer than it takes to do his business.

We are lucky. We have a roof over our heads and enough income to keep the A/C on.

Thank you...again.

[Marrah_G]

4. I worry about all of you out there

I can't even wrap my brain around that much heat. I would probably literally stand in a cold shower all day long if the ac went out.

[Cerridwen]

8. If there is time to adapt, it can work.

But...that adaption time is very important. I might still be "okay" except for an event I had some years back (another of my replies in this thread).

It's intense, and we're lucky. Part of me wants to stay and build all kinds of shelter and the other part of me wants to run screaming from this horrific nightmare that is the desert. Sorry. That sounds hyperbolic. Unfortunately, it's also how I feel.

[Posteritatis]

5. As someone who gets uncomfortable around 80F (when it's not humid), those temps are horrifying (nt)

[Cerridwen]

7. Yeah. Most definately.

I suffered a job-induced case of heat-stroke a few years back. For most of us, our body never recovers and we're less tolerant of heat from that time on.

I was born in the desert and can no longer tolerate the heat; we're moving soon. Yay!

BTW, 80 degrees is about my upper tolerance level. I do adapt to cold (relatively speaking) better than I do to heat.

[Tx4obama]

9. Pretty hot here in Houston today, but no where near 117 - ouch!

This afternoon my thermometer on the patio (in the shade) said 103.

It's now after 10pm and it says 98.

The air-conditioner in the house BROKE about two hours ago and the inside temp is slowly rising.

A/C man won't be out to look at it until.

I don't know what is worse: the summer heat in the south or the winter cold in the north.

Stay cool and hydrated

[Cerridwen]

10. I most certainly will do so.

While your A/C is out, (though you may know these), wet and cooled (or frozen) towels, on top of head and back of neck, a fan blowing on a bowl of ice as you sit right in the path of the air, drinking (carefully) lots of cold fluid (not any that act as a diuretic) helps to cool you from the inside and makes the external heat "tolerable", stay away from caffeine and alcohol; they are diuretic and cause sweating and/or hot flashes. Keep as much cool on all "pulse" points. (If you know this, my apologies. So many do not.)

Keep cool air in and hot air out; close the doors as the breeze may not help at 98. Ouch! We're down to 106 right now (8:35 pm Pacific Time). It probably won't get much below 90-ish overnight.

[ChazII]

15. Excellent advice and hopefully

folks will heed what you have printed. We have several battery operated fans that we keep close by in case we lose power for some reason. This time of year we also keep bottles of frozen water to place with the yogurt and around the milk should we lose power.

[Cerridwen]

17. Stuff the fridge?! Oh yeah.

We were fortunate enough to get an old freezer. 2 Liter water bottles to keep it working and cold water available.

Thank you.

Stay safe, and healthy, and cool.

[Tx4obama]

19. Yes, good advice. Thank goodness it's only the A/C and NOT the electricity that is out.

When the hurricane came thru a few summers ago we lost our electricity for almost two weeks and it was much more terrible than losing only the A/C.
At least tonight the ceiling fans, refrigerator, freezer, TV, lights, etc are still working.

[Egalitarian Thug]

11. K&R. Brutal.

[Cerridwen]

12. "Brutal" and true.

The dry desert heat has destroyed my sinuses and ruined my tolerance for temperature changes.

"Brutal" and life destroying. But hey, gotta build here for the profit.

[NickB79]

13. Between diminishing water supplies and faltering infrastructure

I wonder how much longer we'll be able to maintain million-person cities in the Southwest.

Based on current climate change computer models, I'd say 20 years at most.

[Cerridwen]

16. You're being optimistic.

We took a damned hard hit during the recent recession/depression.

You won't see it in the "news". You'd have to drive around here and know the history. It's ugly.

Part of the valley is "sinking" due to the excessive use of our aquifers.

"Investors" are buying up all the cheap crap they can and selling crap properties for pennies on the dollar.

We went and checked one property on which the sewer pipe was exposed... The lack of structural safety and health standards is disgusting.

There is more, but it would take volumes.

[nadinbrzezinski]

14. I suggested, as an example to kids in the 7 and older set

The cooking an egg on pavement exercise...it does drive the point home.

A gent today went to the burn center after he fell on pavement.

[ohheckyeah]

18. You bring up some very good points about dehydration.

Dehydration can happen so quickly and it can be deadly. My husband was transferred to Phoenix back in the 70s and it was 115 the day we landed. I had a quart Mason jar that I kept full of ice water - I didn't feel like I could ever drink enough liquids.

I miss Arizona but I don't miss the brutal summer months. While it is humid here in Virginia, it's not 117 degrees, although it has been in the 90s a couple of times which is hot when the humidity is high.

The temperatures in most of Arizona are brutal right now - take care folks!

[Bette Noir]

20. A few years ago, 30 people died in the LA area during a single heat wave.

Most of them were either people living in their cars, or elderly people living without air conditioning.

Don't be proud. In this heat, if you don't have air conditioning, find a cool space to hang out-- a mall, a library, a community center. And drink plenty of water.

[SheilaT]

21. I have lived in various parts of this country, including Tucson and Phoenix.

I think the hottest official temperature I've ever been in is about 115.

I do recall that my last summer in Tucson we had a heat wave that lasted eight days. If I remember correctly, all of those days went over 110, and only one did not go over, I don't know 113? 115? I know that the official temperatures were recorded at the airport, and they were several degrees below what was in downtown, which was where I worked at the time.

At the end of that week I got, what I realize in retrospect, was mild heat stroke. I had an unbearable headache and was nauseous, classic symptoms. I was quite young, and so I recovered nicely.

But I've always hated hot weather. And those who blithely say, "Oh, it's a dry heat," just have no clue.

Some years back I was living in the Washington DC area, well noted for hot and humid summers. One year a co-worker was planning to go to Tucson, to visit his brother, during the summer. Co-worker had four children, and so obviously summer was when vacation time occurred for him. I said, "Oh, Dave, you'll regret it." And he said, "Oh, Sheila, it's not the heat, it's the humidity." I responded, "Tell me that again when you get home."

When he got home and I asked him how the vacation was, he said, "You're right. It's the heat. The first week we were there we stayed indoors the entire time."

Now I understand there are those who love the heat, and (to quote Elizabeth Warren entirely out of context) to them I say, God bless. You enjoy the heat. But understand that not everyone does.

When we were living in Phoenix my then husband once commented, "The only way to dress for the heat is to wear an air-conditioned car." He was right. In that kind of heat you simply scurry from one air-conditioned place to another.

I live now in Santa Fe, and a crucial part of my decision to move here (from the Kansas City area) had to do with hot weather. In May, the year before I moved, and knowing divorce was in my immediate future, I was in DC at a conference. I was giving serious thought to moving back there, because I had friends and relatives there, knew my way around, knew I could get a decent job, and so on. In the middle of the conference I stepped outside the hotel, and even though it was nowhere near as hot as DC can get in the summer (this being only May) I looked around and said to myself, "I have choices. And I choose never again to live where I must have air-conditioning in the summer."

It can get warm here in Santa Fe, and yesterday it hit 102 at the airport. But it really does cool off at night. Not like Phoenix, where triple-digit overnight temps are common in the summer, but into the 60's and even 50's. I actually live without a/c. This past week, when it's been pretty hot, my little house has gotten warmer than I'd prefer, and I'll admit I do consider installing a swamp cooler. But so far, I've managed nicely without. I have windows open in my house from sometime in March until sometime in October, and I love it.

I know that we are all different, and that there are those who would do something drastic rather than endure temperatures below 60, or 50, or whatever they consider too cold. For me, I'd rather snuggle up in the cold than try to endure the heat.

And no matter what you prefer, it's absolutely true that global climate change, mainly in the form of warmer temperatures, is here to stay.

[pansypoo53219]

22. I am a barefooter(24/7/12 months) in WI. unless i need something in extra cold.

i have burned my feet on blacktop on 90f days, so i can't imagine phoenix. dirt is hot at that temp. yes, you dogs will burn their pads.