Despite promises, California doesn’t know how many people died in record summer heat wave
This time of year, the state’s heat is a familiar sight. When the thermometer hits triple digits, the humidity makes the air seem like it’s a furnace, and the heat triggers the first of what is likely a year-round pattern of visits from the California Highway Patrol, who issue warnings to drivers and offer heat-related road-safety safety tips. At least that’s how the state officials see it.
Last week, the state announced an additional 3,500 deaths, which brings the statewide total to 28,050. It marks the third-highest number of deaths in a single day in California history and the second-most deaths in a single day in California history. On Aug. 23, 2007, there were 33,650 deaths in the three days, which was the fourth-highest total in modern history.
What makes this particular heat wave so unusual for Californian history is that the state only recorded an additional 6,900 deaths on Aug. 23 and 24. (There were 30,924 deaths in the heat wave of 2007.) The heat wave that swept through the state in 2007 was far more severe than the heat wave of 2016, when the state saw 29,800 deaths in three days, according to the state’s preliminary preliminary death count, and a preliminary preliminary death count of 29,876.
The state’s preliminary preliminary death count was released on Monday, while the final preliminary preliminary death count in August will not be released until December.
In the heat wave of 2016, some 4.4 million Californians were affected by heat-related deaths in that heat wave, according to the preliminary preliminary death count. That was about one-third more than the state had seen in all of 2016.
The total is expected to rise to 4.6 million based on the preliminary preliminary death count, since the preliminary preliminary death count includes people who died in the heat wave of August 2007.
On Aug. 27, the state said it had released the final preliminary preliminary death count, which was the highest number of deaths in California history.
The heat wave that swept through the state in 2007 was far more severe than the heat wave of 2016, when the state saw 29,800 deaths in three days, according
