We Mapped Heat in 3 U.S. Cities. Some Sidewalks Were Over 130 Degrees

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By Raymond Zhong and Mira Rojanasakul, The New York Times. 

Excerpt: We usually talk about summertime heat in terms of how hot the air is, but there’s another metric that matters: the temperatures of roads, sidewalks, buildings, parking lots and other outdoor surfaces. Hot surfaces can make the places people live and work more dangerous, and can increase the risk of contact burns. ...Around noon on July 10, huge parts of [Phoenix] were 120 degrees Fahrenheit, about 49 Celsius, or hotter to the touch. Had you been unlucky or unwise enough to actually touch it with bare skin, it could have caused injury within minutes. ...So far this summer, the Arizona Burn Center, which serves Phoenix and the broader Southwest, has admitted 65 people for severe heat-related burns, according to Dr. Kevin Foster, the center’s director. Six of these people died from their injuries. Last summer, the center recorded 14 such deaths. ...645 heat-related deaths that were identified last year in Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix. That was the highest number on record for the county. ...Phoenix...is trying to plant more trees and increase shade. The city’s “Cool Pavement” program has treated 120 miles of asphalt to help it reflect more sunlight and stay cooler as a result.... 


See also New York Times article, In Extreme Heat, Do You Need More Electrolytes?

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