At least 645 people died from heat-related illnesses in Arizona’s largest county last year, a preliminary report from its Public Health Department found Wednesday.
Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, said it saw a record-setting heat wave in July 2023 that caused a 52% increase in heat-related deaths from the previous year. Every day of July reported temperatures of 110 degrees and above, according to the report.
The data highlight the severe risk that hot weather poses to large portions of the population, including homeless people and people who struggle with substance abuse.
“This tragic number shows us how much work we still have to do,” Dr. Rebecca Sunenshine, the medical director for the Maricopa County Department of Public Health, said in a news release. “With a coordinated county-wide strategy, nearly every one of these deaths can be prevented.”
Nearly two-thirds of the deaths included the use of illegal drugs, alcohol, or both, the report noted, and most commonly affected men, who made up almost three-quarters of the deaths. Age also played a role in the fatalities, which saw that people 50 years and over also made up around two-thirds of the deaths.
Experts said the dangers of heat can be underreported to leaders in other communities around the country because deaths could be attributed to preexisting health conditions that get worse in hot temperatures.
Some communities, for example, could note that the cause of death was kidney disease, heart attacks or strokes, or respiratory problems, without taking the added stress from heat into consideration, according to NBC News.
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Extreme heat is the largest weather-related cause of death in the country, and temperatures are expected to continue to rise during the summer. Heat-related deaths in Maricopa County have increased every year since 2014, when just 61 people were reported to have died from heat-related illnesses.
The city of Phoenix has established hydration stations and cooling centers in recent years to help reduce the dangers of high temperatures. It has additionally distributed more than 400,000 bottles of water to local nonprofit groups, small businesses, and faith-based organizations to help battle the heat.
