Phoenix experienced its hottest July on record this year, with 31 consecutive days reaching 110 degrees or more, and elected officials have announced measures to combat the extreme heat.
Officials from President Joe Biden to local governments in Maricopa County, Arizona’s largest, have said steps need to be taken to protect people from heat during the record streak, which ended Monday, according to The Associated Press. The previous record of 18 consecutive days of temperatures at 110 degrees or more was set in 1974.
There were 425 heat-related deaths in Maricopa County in 2022, according to the county, a 25% increase from 2021.
Here’s what officials and governments have said about measures to combat extreme heat:
Federal response
President Joe Biden announced federal plans to combat extreme heat last week at a virtual event that included Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego, and he plans to visit Arizona next week as part of a trip that will also include stops in Utah and New Mexico.
Biden said at last week’s event that the bipartisan infrastructure law sets aside $20 billion to upgrade electrical grids to be able to withstand stronger storms and heatwaves, and he said he asked Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su to issue a “Heat Hazard Alert,” which gives workers federal heat-related protections.
Biden noted other federal efforts, including the website heat.gov, which offers information from the National Integrated Heat Health Information System; the Interior Department expanding water storage capacity in the West; and $1 billion in grants from the U.S. Forest Service for cities and towns to plant trees.
“The number one weather-related killer is heat,” Biden said. “Even those places that are used to extreme heat have never seen it as hot as it is now for as long as it’s been. Even those who deny that we’re in the midst of a climate crisis can’t deny the impact that extreme heat is having on Americans.”
Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., co-sponsored the Extreme Heat Emergency Act of 2023 last month with Reps. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., and Sylvia Garcia, D-Texas. The legislation would make extreme heat a major disaster qualifying event under FEMA rules.
“Every summer, we are experiencing hotter and longer heat waves in the Valley,” Gallego said in a statement. “Despite the too often deadly effects of this heat, Arizonans are left to deal with the impacts themselves, and it is draining their resources. By adding extreme heat to the list of major disasters, my bill will help provide Arizona with the federal assistance and resources they need.”
State response
Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, wrote a letter to utility companies last month asking how they’re prepared for emergencies, including power disconnection and grid security. In the letter, Hobbs invited utility companies to attend a roundtable meeting.
Hobbs should do more, according to Sandra Kennedy, a former member of the Arizona Corporation Commission and a fellow Democrat, who called on Hobbs to declare a state of emergency because “a heat event is just like having a tornado event or a disaster where there’s lots of rain and it is flooding.”
Hobbs’ chief of staff Chad Campbell told Arizona Family, “Maybe it ends up being a statewide emergency declared, but right now, I would say we’re not going to do, the governor is not going to, do anything that is just for show.”
Local response
The Maricopa Association of Governments partnered with the city of Phoenix and the Salvation Army to open more than 200 heat relief centers across the Phoenix area this year.
The program operates cooling centers offering water and air conditioning, respite centers that allow visitors to sit or rest, and hydration stations, which offer bottled water, according to KTAR.
People can find their nearest heat relief station here.