Much of Nation Swelters Under Record Highs
Air conditioners strained and people sweated Friday as a heat wave sizzled from the Plains to the East Coast with steamy humidity and temperatures near 100.
Record highs Friday included 103 at Danbury, Conn.; 97 at Williamsport, Pa.; 96 at South Bend, Ind.; and 95 at Worcester, Mass.
Even Caribou, Me., better known as a subzero cold spot in the winter, hit a record 91.
A cold front and thunderstorms brought a little relief to the Dakotas and parts of Nebraska--Yankton, S.D., had a high Thursday of 100 and Sioux Falls, S.D., topped out at 99, but their temperatures fell by 20 degrees in just two hours late Thursday.
Across New York state, air conditioners boosted demand for electricity Thursday to a record 26,051 megawatts. On Friday, at noon the record jumped to 26,254 megawatts; by 1 p.m. that record toppled as demand climbed to 26,708 megawatts.
“We’re experiencing instantaneous, hour-to-hour records,” said Brian Gosling, a spokesman for the New York Power Pool, a group of seven electric utilities and the New York Power Authority.
Officials in Maine, New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts issued warnings advising the elderly and people with heart or lung disease to stay indoors because of high ozone levels.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
