Americans from Texas to Maine sweated out a steamy Saturday as a heat wave canceled events from festivals to horse races, chased baseball fans out of their seats and pushed New York City to order steps to avoid straining the electrical system.
The National Weather Service said "a dangerous heat wave" sent temperatures into the 90-degree Fahrenheit (32-degree Celsius), with high humidity that made it feel considerably hotter. It was expected to stay warm at night, in the upper 70 to low 80 degrees, with more heat on the way Sunday for the East Coast.
Many people in areas facing excessive heat this weekend have no air conditioning, and cities opened shelters for people to cool off.
With record- or near-record-high temperatures at night when many air-conditioned places are closed, the weather can become especially dangerous for people who don't get a chance to cool down, experts say. The risks are greater for young children, the elderly and the sick.
Amid hot weather with a heat wave stretching from the Midwestern plains to the Atlantic coast, people enjoy the Astoria Pool on an afternoon in the borough of Queens, New York City, the U.S., July 20, 2019. /VCG Photo
Over three days in July 1995, more than 700 people died during a heat wave in Chicago as temperatures rose above 97 degrees (36 degrees Celsius). Many of the dead were poor, elderly and lived alone.
While the Midwest will get some relief Sunday as a cold front brings storms and lower temperatures, the East won't be so lucky until Monday, and the heat will be the worst from the Carolinas to Maine, the weather service warned.
New York City authorities canceled a Times Square commemoration of the 1969 moon landing and an outdoor festival featuring soccer star Megan Rapinoe, musician John Legend and "Daily Show" host Trevor Noah.
The city also directed owners of many office buildings to set thermostats no lower than 78 degrees (26 degrees Celsius) through Sunday to reduce strain on the electrical grid.
The measure came after a power outage related to an equipment failure, instead of heat, which caused a roughly five-hour blackout on July 13 with a 40-block stretch of Manhattan affected, including Times Square and Rockefeller Center.
A girl submerges herself in the fountain at Washington Square Park in Manhattan to cool down, New York, U.S., July 20, 2019. /VCG Photo
Storms have knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of people in parts of Michigan and Wisconsin, heightening the misery. Strong wind and rain were expected to persist Saturday night and into Sunday in the Midwest and Central Plains.
In Philadelphia, several hundred people were evacuated from a retirement community due to a partial power outage, though it wasn't immediately clear whether the problem was heat-related.
Residents were taken to a nearby shelter, and police said some went to a hospital for evaluation.
In Chicago, heat nixed several outdoor events, including a five-kilometer run in Grant Park and a morning workout at Millennium Park.
It hit 94 degrees (34 degrees Celsius) by first pitch at the San Diego Padres - Chicago Cubs game at Wrigley Field, but some fans didn't want to stay away, largely watching from shaded concourses as the Cubs won 6-5.
In New Jersey, operators of the Monmouth Park horse racing track canceled six races and pushed back others until early evening, including the one-million-U.S.-dollar Haskell Invitational.
Animal rights activists protested outside the New Jersey Shore track, where temperatures hit the high 90 degrees.