Heat, the other type of Storm

2/2/2021 (Permalink)

When talking about storms, the most common are always mentioned. Snow, rain and wind are the main ingredients for what seems to be the “most popular” types of storms. One ingredient that seems to get over looked at times is a heat storm, better known as a heat wave, and the damage it can cause.

According to Wikipedia, a heat wave is a period of excessively hot weather, which may be accompanied by high humidity. While some definitions vary, a heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual weather in the area and relative to normal temperatures for the season. There are many different ways a heat wave can affect you’re your locally owned SERVPRO may be able to help with a couple heat related issues, like the results of smoke damage to a house that was cause by a wildfire, that was caused by extreme heat in dry conditions. If a heat wave occurs during a drought, which dries out vegetation, it can contribute to bushfires and wildfires. 

Heat waves can also cause power outages. Abnormally hot temperatures can cause electricity demand to increase during the peak summertime hours of 4 to 7 p.m. when air conditioners are straining to overcome the heat. 

Heat waves can and do cause physical damages to roadways. Long periods of extreme heat can cause them to buckle and melt. It can cause water lines to burst, and power transformers to detonate, causing fires. Heat waves can also damage rail road’s, such as buckling and kinking rails, which can lead to slower traffic, delays, and even cancellations of service when rails are too dangerous to traverse by trains.

More serious and sad issues from heat are the Psychological and Sociological effects and Mortality. In addition to physical stress, excessive heat causes psychological stress, to a degree which affects performance, and is also associated with an increase in violent crime. High temperatures are associated with increased conflict both at the interpersonal level and at the societal level.

Heat waves are the most lethal type of weather phenomenon in the United States. According to Wikipedia, between 1992 and 2001, deaths from excessive heat in the United States numbered 2,190, compared with 880 deaths from floods and 150 from hurricanes. The average annual number of fatalities directly attributed to heat in the United States is about 400. The number of heat fatalities is likely highly underreported due to a lack of reports and misreports. Your SERVPRO is here to help you and our community. No matter the Storm.