1 More Day For Heat, Humidity
A weeklong heat wave that has pushed temperatures into the mid-90's will last one more day before temps drop into the mid-80's Friday.
AccuWeather forecasters predict temperatures will climb into the low 90's Thursday and the National Weather Service has extended a Heat Advisory for southeastern Michigan until 8 p.m. Thursday.
A Heat Advisory means that a period of hot temperatures is expected and the combination of hot temperatures and high humidity will combine to create a situation in which heat illnesses are possible.
Doctors say people should drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room if possible, stay out of the sun, and check on relatives and neighbors. Children and pets should never be left unattended in vehicles under any circumstances.
The heat is blamed for at least two deaths.
Grosse Pointe Farms police say 81-year-old Robert Gall was found on the floor of his home on McKinley Street Wednesday. The windows were shut and no air conditioning was running. Click here for related article.
On Sunday, 56-year-old Debra Calzadillas was found dead in Waterford Township next to the vehicle in which she'd been living.
There is a chance for thunderstorms throughout the day that will finally break the grip that high heat has had on the region.
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On Wednesday, with triple-digit highs recorded from New York to Charlotte, North Carolina, roads buckled, nursing homes with air-conditioning problems were forced to evacuate and utilities called for conservation as the electrical grid neared its capacity.
In the nation's biggest city, Wall Streeters sweltered in business suits on subway platforms and senior citizens schlepped to grocery stores on streets that seemed like frying pans. The mercury hit 100 degrees by 3 p.m. Wednesday after topping out at 103 on Tuesday.
CBS News correspondent Jeff Glor reports local officials are warning the public that the health risks associated with heat waves like this will likely take a little longer to dissipate.
"The same system that's been trapping the hot air in this area for so long is also trapping the pollution," said Ray Werner, an air polution official with the Environmental Protection Agency. "As this heat wave goes on it essentially means we're breathing the same air again and again and again."
As tens of millions did their best to cool off during yet another day of sweltering temperatures, emergency crews were on alert.
In Baltimore, workers made phone calls to check on 3,600 elderly residents, and a nursing home was evacuated after officials learned patients had spent more than three days without air conditioning.
"They kept running fans - but fans don't cool you off in temperatures like this," said one patient.
Air quality decreases when trapped heat and sunlight react with vehicle exhaust and other pollutants….releasing more irritants into the air and causing breathing difficulties for many.
"This can be very dangerous, the heat and humidity can be particularly bad for people with cardiac, heart, or lung diseases," said Dr. Edward Eden of St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center.
© MMX WWJ Radio, All Rights Reserved. CBS News and the Associated Press contributed to his report.
