All we need to complete the weather scene today are sulfurous lakes
of fire and a red guy with hooves and a pitchfork.
Dangerously high temperatures and humidity will smother
Connecticut today as the second heat wave of summer simmers over the
Northeast.
Unhealthful levels of smog are also expected as the sun cooks car
exhaust into thick, soupy ozone.
Doctors warned Friday that the very young, the elderly, and
people with chronic diseases are at a high risk for heat-related
illnesses.
However, that doesn’t mean everyone else should ignore the
temperature.
Dr. Mark Metersky, critical care physician at the University of
Connecticut Health Center, said everyone should guard against heat
exhaustion and heat stroke.
"It’s a serious time to educate people. We’re all at risk today,"
said Cynthia Lord, director of the physician assistant program at
Quinnipiac University.
Restrict outdoor exertion to early morning and late afternoon and
make sure you remain adequately hydrated, she said.
Monitor elderly relatives and friends and make sure they are cool
and drinking enough fluids.
Humidity and temperature will make fans almost useless over the
weekend, so if necessary, take elderly people to movies, malls, and
other air-conditioned places, Lord said.
Babies and young children are also at risk. So are people with
chronic heart and lung diseases, or high blood pressure, she said.
Lord said people should consume two to four glasses of cool,
non-alcoholic liquid every hour if they are exercising outside.
"The elderly and chronically ill may not realize that they can
get into trouble without exertion," Metersky said.
Drugs such as diuretics, some heart and blood pressure
medications, or salt-restricted diets could all interfere with the
body’s cooling mechanism, he said.
Under usual conditions the body perspires water and salt, which
evaporates, causing cooling.
If water is not replaced, blood pressure can drop, which places
an extra strain on the heart.
The initial sign of dehydration is arm, leg and belly cramps,
Lord said.
Resting and consuming a sports drink should restore equilibrium.
Ignore the cramps and you might become light-headed and could
faint.
Go inside, lie down, and consume fluids.
Here’s where heat gets serious.
Profuse sweating, headache, nausea and a racing heart are
symptoms of heat exhaustion. Go to a hospital.
After that, comes confusion, peculiar behavior, faintness,
stumbling, strong rapid pulse and dry, flushed skin. Call 911.
This is heat stroke, which can lead to seizures, coma and death.
Temperatures will moderate next week as the Bermuda high weakens,
said John Murray of the National Weather Service.
The clockwise system is responsible for blowing hot southern air
north.
Next week will be a bit cooler with highs in the low to mid-80s.
Searing sun heats the earth and destabilizes the atmosphere,
creating the possibility of late afternoon or evening showers and
thunderstorms through next week, Murray said.
