Extreme Heat Wave Continues in US West
2021-06-18
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1An early heat wave has been bringing high temperatures to the western United States.
2Scientists are warning that the extreme heat and dry conditions might become normal.
3Many places in the American West have been reporting drought conditions for many years.
4Park Williams is an associate professor in geography with the University of California, Los Angeles.
5He said, "Heat waves are getting worse in the West because the soil is so dry."
6Williams said soil in the western half of the country is the driest it has been since 1895.
7For example, Phoenix, Arizona is having some of the highest temperatures this week.
8On Wednesday, it reached 46 degrees Celsius.
9"We could have two, three, four, five of these heat waves before the end of the summer," Williams said.
10An extreme heat warning is in effect until at least Sunday.
11Reports say in Palm Springs, California, the temperature reached 49 degrees Celsius on Tuesday.
12Weather experts say a high-pressure system spread over the west this week, causing unusually hot days.
13Officials in California asked people to save electricity for a few hours on Thursday.
14They asked people to set their air-conditioning systems to 25.5 degrees Celsius or higher and turn off unnecessary lights and electronics.
15Officials said they do not expect power outages.
16But that could change if temperatures remain high in the coming days.
17The San Francisco Bay area has also had higher than normal temperatures.
18Kathleen Craft works at a shelter in the city of Livermore, California.
19She said temperatures had reached 37 degrees Celsius but just one woman came to a special cooling center.
20Craft said she expects more people as temperatures rise.
21Denver, Colorado, also saw a record high of 38 degrees Celsius on Tuesday.
22And western Colorado is under an extreme heat warning.
23The area is also experiencing extremely dry conditions.
24John Salmen is a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
25He said Las Vegas, Nevada, will likely remain at 45 degrees Celsius or hotter through Sunday.
26Temperatures could break the record high of 47 degrees Celsius set in June of 2017.
27"This is pretty impressive. We're seeing all-time records fall," Salmen said.
28In Montana, temperatures over 38 degrees Celsius have made it harder to fight forest fires.
29The fires have gotten much larger in size, destroying homes and forcing evacuations.
30High winds have spread the flames and forced the crash-landing of a firefighting helicopter.
31At least 14 new fires have been reported in Montana and Wyoming since Tuesday.
32Dry weather was also being felt in Idaho.
33Officials there are preparing for a difficult forest fire season.
34Nick Nauslar is a meteorologist with the National Interagency Fire Center.
35He told state officials this week that 80 percent of Idaho is very dry.
36He said Idaho had its second-driest spring in the last 126 years.
37I'm Dan Novak.
1An early heat wave has been bringing high temperatures to the western United States. 2Scientists are warning that the extreme heat and dry conditions might become normal. Many places in the American West have been reporting drought conditions for many years. 3Park Williams is an associate professor in geography with the University of California, Los Angeles. He said, "Heat waves are getting worse in the West because the soil is so dry." Williams said soil in the western half of the country is the driest it has been since 1895. 4For example, Phoenix, Arizona is having some of the highest temperatures this week. On Wednesday, it reached 46 degrees Celsius. 5"We could have two, three, four, five of these heat waves before the end of the summer," Williams said. 6An extreme heat warning is in effect until at least Sunday. 7Reports say in Palm Springs, California, the temperature reached 49 degrees Celsius on Tuesday. Weather experts say a high-pressure system spread over the west this week, causing unusually hot days. 8Officials in California asked people to save electricity for a few hours on Thursday. They asked people to set their air-conditioning systems to 25.5 degrees Celsius or higher and turn off unnecessary lights and electronics. Officials said they do not expect power outages. But that could change if temperatures remain high in the coming days. 9The San Francisco Bay area has also had higher than normal temperatures. Kathleen Craft works at a shelter in the city of Livermore, California. She said temperatures had reached 37 degrees Celsius but just one woman came to a special cooling center. Craft said she expects more people as temperatures rise. 10Denver, Colorado, also saw a record high of 38 degrees Celsius on Tuesday. And western Colorado is under an extreme heat warning. The area is also experiencing extremely dry conditions. 11John Salmen is a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. He said Las Vegas, Nevada, will likely remain at 45 degrees Celsius or hotter through Sunday. Temperatures could break the record high of 47 degrees Celsius set in June of 2017. 12"This is pretty impressive. We're seeing all-time records fall," Salmen said. 13In Montana, temperatures over 38 degrees Celsius have made it harder to fight forest fires. The fires have gotten much larger in size, destroying homes and forcing evacuations. High winds have spread the flames and forced the crash-landing of a firefighting helicopter. At least 14 new fires have been reported in Montana and Wyoming since Tuesday. 14Dry weather was also being felt in Idaho. Officials there are preparing for a difficult forest fire season. 15Nick Nauslar is a meteorologist with the National Interagency Fire Center. He told state officials this week that 80 percent of Idaho is very dry. He said Idaho had its second-driest spring in the last 126 years. 16I'm Dan Novak. 17Anita Snow reported this story for The Associated Press. Dan Novak adapted it for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. 18_______________________________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20drought - n. a long period of time during which there is very little or no rain 21outage - n. a period of time when there is no electricity in a building or area 22meteorology - n. a science that deals with the atmosphere and with weather 23evacuate - v. to remove (someone) from a dangerous place