For Immediate Release
Friday, July 19th, 2019
(Brooklyn, NY) – Communities across the Central and Eastern United States are facing a weekend of dangerous heat levels. The oncoming heat wave is building on the effects of Tropical Storm Barry, making the heat wave an extremely humid one with the maximum heat index temperature expected to be 105° or higher for at least 2 days. The U.S.’s own 4th national climate assessment in 2018 found extreme heat events are on the rise and have been since the 1960s, harming people, livestock, and infrastructure at rates on par with the deadliest of climate disasters. Such levels of heat exacerbate droughts, wildfires, and electrical issues, leading to further climate impacts.
May Boeve, executive director of 350 Action, made the following statement:
“Every year, record-breaking temperatures mark a need for truly bold political action on the climate crisis. This deadly heat wave is already having devastating impacts across the United States, particularly for poor, elderly, and disabled people. We need our country’s elected officials, and particularly those running for President, to address this immediately: not in empty words, but through tangible plans for climate action.
“‘This is yet another reason we are continuing to call on the DNC for an urgent climate debate to address the concerns of communities dealing with the climate crisis every day. We demand long overdue answers from Presidential candidates about how they will address the underlying causes of climate change, and how they will support community resilience in the face of climate impacts, such as more extreme heat waves, that occur on an annual basis. Those in office must go beyond issuing heat advisories towards action that prioritizes our health and survival. We need total economic and social transformation to meet the scale of this crisis, in order to truly protect our communities from the already-devastating consequences.”
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Press Contact: Monica Mohapatra, U.S. Communications Specialist, [email protected]