Severe California Heatwave Kills People, Livestock and Crops

Posted on July 31, 2006

The heat wave that struck California last week was unprecedented in California's history. Here are some highlights that show the serious impact the severe heat wave had on humans, animals and crops in the region.

  • Epochal event: "It has been hotter for longer than ever before, and the weather patterns that caused the scorching temperatures were positively freakish. The region's last significant hot spell -- in 1972 -- lasted two days, and never in the past has the Bay Area suffered through as many consecutive days of temperatures above 110."
  • 163 humans killed and counting: "In California, the sweltering heat that punished the state for two weeks subsided, but the number of confirmed or suspected heat-related deaths climbed to 163 as county coroners worked through a backlog of cases."
  • 25,000+ cattle killed: "New reports say thta Central California between Bakersfield and Redding is home to approximately 2.5 million cattlem of which 25,000 died because of the triple-digit temperatures since July 14."
  • Crops damaged: "Agriculture experts say peach, plum, nectarine and walnut crops have been destroyed this year. California farm losses could drive up national food prices in coming months."
  • Tomatoes split open by the heat. "Tomatoes being grown for salsa, ketchup and pasta sauces were found split in the fields, which will make them hard to sell."
  • Hundreds of thousands of chickens and turkeys killed. "About 700,000 chickens and 160,000 turkeys have been killed in the valley"
  • Bats fell dead onto California streets. "People aren't the only ones feeling a West Coast heat wave -- bats are literally falling off their perches and onto the streets in California."
  • Leading websites like MySpace.com forced offline by power outages.
  • Unusually extreme night temperatures.

    This is really terrifying. Should global warming continue to make longer-lasting and more intense heat waves as is expected it could seriously impair our food supply by both killing livestock and damaging crops. The heat wave is expected to travel east this week.

    Experts believe this is just a sign of things to come thanks to global warming. New data has also found that an average of 900 people per year have been killed in the U.S. because of heat between 1999 and 2003.

    George Luber, an epidemiologist who studies heat wave deaths for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says the current situation is on track to be "the most active one that I can recall" in terms of heat deaths.

    A new analysis by Luber this week shows that between 1999 and 2003, the United States averaged nearly 900 heat-related deaths each year. This year, with 132 reported in central California alone, could be worse, he said.

    It does look like heat-related deaths will be up this year. It is only August 1st and a significant heat wave is now threatening the Midwest and the East Coast. Chicago has already reported new deaths from this heat wave. The scary thought is what will the death tolls from heat waves for both humans and livestock be like in ten or twenty years?

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