The heat index in Council Bluffs, IA, was reported as 128F

[Skidmore]

this afternoon. It topped at about 112F here. Disgustingly humid and no relief in sight. Lord, I hate this time of summer. How are you doing in your area?

[CleanGreenFuture]

1. We apparently got a cold front down here in Tejas...it's a chilly 100 degrees.

[librechik]

2. Thankfully in Denver and back from Council Bluffs

only about 100 in Denver today. I was in Iowa about a month ago.

[elocs]

3. Here in La Crosse, WI by the Mississippi the heat index was 115 today.

I don't know if it got higher, but defrosted the freezer on my 43 year old fridge in 30 minutes in my non air conditioned kitchen.

[CatWoman]

4. on the news during my drive home

it was reported that smoke alarms are going off in homes all over the country because of the heat.

[Posteritatis]

5. I may have actually died from heatstroke just reading that.

If the humidex in my neck of the woods crawls into the 90F+ range I start shedding IQ points by the dozen. I can't imagine dealing with that.

[spooked911]

6. wow

global warming anyone?

[Itchinjim]

7. Nope, just summer in Iowa.

[wtbymark]

8. Reno= 92F 10-15%rh elv. 4300 n/t

[emilyg]

9. Atlanta - 94

[kenny blankenship]

10. Today's forecast is Medium Rare

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Qt19NwlJjlg/Sl1fUbtsEGI/AAAAAAAAD7o/YCDf9QE7fwc/s400/20090711_6502-Cock-n-Bull_medium-rare-steak-$2.jpg

[FLPanhandle]

11. Nice cool 86 right now here in Florida

Finally got some rain over the weekend, so it's nice now.

[NJCher]

12. 96 with a RealFeel of 99

The heat makes me crabby and short-tempered.

We've had it easy so far this spring/summer in the northeast, but I knew yesterday a heat wave was coming in. I closed off my office, which has a huge 18,000 btu AC in it. Also three fans. I made a door covering so the AC didn't have to run so often.

My office is located in a section of the house that is in the shade, under the trees, too, so it doesn't take too much to keep it cool.

With plenty of work to do, I'm just hanging out in here. I occasionally venture out to the kitchen for a fresh glass of ice to go with my tea or sparkling water.

Kitties are just stretched out, trying to get by. Here's my kitty known as The Chubster:



Every summer Chubster licks the fur off her tummy so she can be cooler. :)


Cher

[Ilsa]

13. Actually, there is a building in nearby Omaha that I'd like

to see spontaneously combust, but only if senior management only is in the building.

Aside from that, I'm very sorry everyone else is baking there.

I've been in heat index of 122. Miserable. Deathly miserable.

[Upton]

14. 75 here in SW Washington state..

it's been raining a lot lately too. In fact, summer hasn't really started here yet..

[Marnie]

15. The heat index a load of bull so weather persons

can make things sound more dramatic than they really are.

I have been in temperatures from -32 to 117. Real temperatures not heat index and not wind chill (which is a real factor in removing heat from an exposed body.)

An actual temperature of 117 is vastly more stressful to the body than an imagined temperature of 117.

Heat index is a measure of "comfort" under the assumption that the claminess of humidity makes the individual "feel" the heat more.

Nothing is more stressful than high temperatures and very low humidity. The body cannot perspire fast enough at temps above around 110 to allow evaporation to do any cooling, humidity be damned. So the body pumps out more and more of the body's fluids in the attempt to do the impossible. The skin stay dry so there is not the discomfort of claminess.

Also, the same thing is going on in the lungs. Breathing rate increases in true extreme temps to try to cool the body through evaporation from the lung's mucus membranes.

Again there is a huge loss of fluids when this process goes on for any length of time that can become life threatening as the body, is incapable of cooling itself, core temperature rises, and heat stroke and death can come swiftly as the body rapidly dehydrates and core temp soars.

The surface of the lungs must be moist for Co2 and O2 to dissolve across the membrane lining.

Humidity in the air helps the lungs deal with the problem of evaporation. Humidity in the air helps the skin stay moist with the body's sweat so that any breeze will carry heat away from the body.

[former9thward]

17. I agree with you about the heat index hype.

But gotta disagree about the high temps and low humidity. I lived in Chicago for many years and now live in Phoenix. I will take the high temps and low humidity of Phoenix over the miserable high humidity of Chicago any day. And no I am not sitting around in a/c all day. I exercise mid day outside for about an hour as well as being out for about an hour walking the dog twice a day.

[bellcrank]

19. Don't bet your life on that disagreement

or the life of your doggie. Please. Because you are just simply wrong.

[former9thward]

20. I don't know if you have ever been to Phoenix in the summer

but you will find people doing the things they always do when the temp is 110 or even 118. I don't see people dropping dead in the heat here.

[bellcrank]

18. That's right...if you feel even a little sick and your skin is hot and dry GET HELP IMMEDIATELY

That's a sign of heat stroke which is far more dangerous than simple overheating. I guess most folks know this but it can't hurt to repeat it. The other part of this, which you sort of mentioned is that when the air temp is over about 100F, that's higher than normal human core temp so heat goes IN instead of OUT.

[d_r]

16. put some of these on your dashboard