When severe weather is mentioned, people usually think of thunderstorms, hail, tornadoes and flash flooding, but extreme heat can be deadly too. Severe Weather Awareness Week in Iowa wraps up today (Friday) and National Weather Service meteorologist Jeff Johnson says extreme heat is a silent killer, especially in cities. It gets hotter in the inner city as people who don’t have air conditioning try to cope can get in deep trouble. Johnson says rural areas have people at risk too, especially when it doesn’t cool off at night. He says some people tend to suffer more than others in the extreme heat. Older people and the very young can be impacted the worst. He recommends able-bodied folks check on the older friends and family, especially those without A-Cs, to make sure they’re okay during the heat waves. Johnson says when temperatures rise, people should keep an eye on the heat index.The heat index is created by a combination of the humidity and the heat index and it starts to get serious at 105-degrees and can become dangerous over 115-degrees.
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