An ice machine waiting for customers on a scorching hot day in in Richmond, British Columbia, June 29, 2021. Schools and Covid-19 vaccination centers closed Monday while community cooling centers opened as western Canada and parts of the western United States baked in an unprecedented heat wave that broke several temperature records. Lytton in British Columbia broke the record for Canada鈥檚 all-time high Monday, with a temperature of 118 degrees Fahrenheit (47.9 degrees Celsius), just one day after the village set the previous record at 116 degrees. (AFP)
VANCOUVER, Canada 鈥� Millions of people in western Canada and the northwestern United States were under heat alerts Wednesday as the region baked in record-breaking temperatures and police reported scores of deaths likely linked to the scorching conditions.
The heat wave has stretched emergency services, with at least 134 people dying suddenly since Friday in the Vancouver area and hundreds more across British Columbia, according to Canadian police and the local coroner.
鈥淭he temperatures recorded this week are unprecedented 鈥�- lives have been lost and the risk of wildfires is at a dangerously high level,鈥� said Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
In the northwest US city of Seattle, doctors reported a flood of heatstroke victims, and at least two patients 鈥� aged 65 and 68 鈥� died of hyperthermia as their bodies overheated, according to the Seattle Times.
Soaring temperatures in California鈥檚 valley, mountain and desert areas raised fears of wildfires amid windy dry conditions, with lightning storms that could spark blazes forecast across several parts of the western United States.
President Joe Biden told a virtual meeting with governors from western states that 鈥渢he threat of western wildfires this year is as severe as it鈥檚 ever been.鈥�
Recalling last year鈥檚 record wildfires that burned more than 10 million acres (four million hectares) across the United States and caused 鈥渙range skies that looked like end of days,鈥� Biden warned that this year 鈥渃ould be even tougher.鈥�
Federal officials say the fire season is already outpacing last year鈥檚 鈥� the worst on record in drought-hit California.
Around 9,000 firefighters have already been deployed to battle blazes across a dozen US states, in particular northern California鈥檚 Lava Fire, which has scorched more than 17,000 acres.
鈥楾oo much鈥�
Canada set a new all-time high temperature record for a third day in a row Tuesday, reaching 121 degrees Fahrenheit (49.5 degrees Celsius) in Lytton, about 155 miles (250 kilometers) east of Vancouver, the country鈥檚 weather service, Environment Canada, reported.
The Vancouver Police Department said Wednesday it alone had responded to more than 98 sudden deaths since Friday, with the vast majority 鈥渞elated to the heat.鈥�
The Pacific coast city for several days recorded temperatures around 90 degrees Fahrenheit 鈥� almost 20 degrees above seasonal norms.
Some Vancouver locals said they had never experienced such temperatures before.
鈥淚t鈥檚 never this bad. I鈥檝e never seen anything like this,鈥� said a resident who only gave her name as Rosa.
鈥淚 hope it never becomes like this ever again. This is too much.鈥�
Others lamented that some residents were more vulnerable to the heat than others.
鈥淚 feel for those people whether they鈥檙e the elderly demographic or people who live on the downtown eastside of Vancouver who don鈥檛 have a cool spot to live or sleep,鈥� said river swimmer Graham Griedger.
Environment Canada said the city鈥檚 heat wave would become less intense from Wednesday but unseasonably hot temperatures would persist for the remainder of the week.
鈥榃on鈥檛 be the last鈥�
Climate change is causing record-setting temperatures to become more frequent. Globally, the decade to 2019 was the hottest recorded, and the five hottest years have all occurred within the last five years.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been seeing more and more of this type of extreme weather event in the past years. So realistically, we know that this heat wave won鈥檛 be the last,鈥� said Trudeau.
The scorching heat stretching to Canada鈥檚 Arctic territories has been blamed on a high-pressure 鈥渉eat dome鈥� trapping warm air in the region.
Temperatures in the US Pacific Northwest cities of Portland and Seattle reached levels not seen since record-keeping began in the 1940s: 115 degrees Fahrenheit in Portland and 108 in Seattle Monday.
The premier of British Columbia, John Horgan, which includes Vancouver, said the 鈥渉ottest week British Columbians have ever experienced鈥� was having 鈥渄isastrous consequences for families and for communities.鈥�
The province鈥檚 chief coroner鈥檚 office said in a statement it recorded 486 deaths between Friday and Wednesday, compared with 165 on average.
The heat wave has forced schools and Covid-19 vaccination centers to close in the Vancouver area, while officials set up temporary water fountains and misting stations on street corners.
Cities across the western United States and Canada opened emergency cooling centers and outreach workers handed out bottles of water and hats.