Unusual temperatures recorded in the U.S., Mexico, Costa Rica, Honduras, Guatemala and France
Record summer heat
(PL and Bolpress.) - Dozens of people have died suffocated by the intense heat wave that breaks in North America and in the center of the continent. In mid-May temperatures in northern India between 40 and 48 degrees Celsius. France recorded the warmest spring since the early twentieth century.
Intense heat in the U.S. and Mexico
On June 9, five elderly died in the states of New York, Maryland and Wisconsin, suffocated by the intense heat wave that affects the territory of the United States, with temperatures ranging between 32 and 38 degrees Celsius (90 to 99 Fahrenheit).
The heat wave could last several days, among other things, the high humidity. The Climate Prediction Center predicts that in the coming days there will be heat marks, especially in southern states, north central and northeast.
Also on 9 June, the National System of Civil Protection of Mexico warned that the heat wave will continue to bat in most of the country, with temperatures over 40 degrees in the states of Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila and Sinaloa. Eight people died from heat until the 4th of April in the cities of Altamiro (Guerrero), Merida (Yucatan) and Mexicali (Baja California), where the thermometer was 42 degrees Celsius, said the Health Ministry (SSA).
This year will be very hot and dry, which could lead to the emergence of diseases such as dengue due to the lack of moisture, hence the warning that persists in the presence of about 700 cases in three months, which in the same period of 2010 was more than four thousand, said health minister Jose Angel Cordova.
The National Forestry Commission (Conafor) recorded to date 5,067 wildfires across the country, an average of two every hour. According to the Organization of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in the 90's were lost 360 thousand hectares by forest fires in Mexico, while last year that figure stood at 126 000.
On May 28 the heat wave continued in Mexico with temperatures of 32 degrees in the capital city, near the record of 33.9 degrees in 1998, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). That week was recorded 45.6 degrees Celsius in the shade in the Den, municipality Sahuaripa, 43.8 degrees at El Novillo, and 43 degrees in the oregano. On May 10 reported the highest temperatures of the season, with 46 degrees at El Naranjo, San Luis Potosi.
On Thursday June 9, thermometers scored four degrees from the average recorded at the beginning of last century in Mexico City. Inside the subway, where the heat wave was felt more strongly, installed posts with jugs of water to quench the thirst of passengers, while fans of the various stations expanded drops of water to cool the underground environment.
We are realizing that the city was not designed for these temperatures, and its transportation system, or nothing if not battle climate change, the consequences can be greater, warned the head of local government Marcelo Ebrard.
Heat wave in Central
In Costa Rica, the average temperature rose one degree Celsius over the past 50 years, according to a study by the National Meteorological Institute (IMN) released in San Jose on March 28.
The study compared the temperatures of the period 1961-1990 with those of 1991-2005, and recorded in the last interval an increase of at least one grade. In the north of the country the maximum temperature rose from 30.6 to 31.1 degrees, with an average record of 32.9 degrees in Guanacaste. In the capital San Jose, the minimum rose from 13.8 to 14.6 degrees. IMN researchers believe that for the last three decades of this century the maximum temperatures in the capital have risen 5.85 degrees.
In those days, the population of Honduras began to suffer from excessive heat, and the Permanent Commission of Contingencies (Copeco) recommended measures to avoid dehydration and the effects on the skin, especially the elderly, children, with heart disease or diabetes, and those who work outdoors.
On March 30, a heat wave affected the southern and northern Honduras, with temperatures ranging between 38 and 40 degrees. The National Weather Service predicted that the current will be the hottest summer in recent years.
In Guatemala, the National Institute of Seismology, Volcanology, Meteorology and Hydrology warned on April 1 that summer temperatures reach up to 35 degrees Celsius, when the normal is 22 to 23 degrees. Institute director Eddy Sanchez said the dry period from March to May will be much more intense than that of 2010, and predicted that in the eastern regions thermometers reach 40 or 42 degrees, and 37 in the department of Petén
