A ferocious heat dome shatters records in the Pacific Northwest
Temperatures soared far beyond anything on record in a region ill-prepared for extreme heat, killing hundreds.
An extraordinary heat wave shattered temperature records across the Pacific Northwest and western Canada this summer, as a powerful "heat dome" sent the mercury soaring far beyond anything previously recorded in a region known for its mild, damp climate.
Temperatures climbed into the triple digits for days, with the small town of Lytton in British Columbia reaching a staggering 49.6 degrees Celsius — a national record — before being largely destroyed by a wildfire the following day. Cities like Portland and Seattle, where air conditioning is far from universal, saw their highest temperatures ever.
The heat proved deadly, killing hundreds of people across the region, many of them elderly or living alone without cooling. Roads buckled, power cables melted, and the health systems strained under a surge of heat-related illness.
Scientists concluded that the event would have been virtually impossible without human-caused climate change, which they said had made such extreme heat hundreds of times more likely. The sheer margin by which records were broken stunned even seasoned climate researchers.
The heat dome was a wake-up call for a region unaccustomed to extreme heat and unprepared for it, prompting efforts to expand cooling, protect vulnerable residents and adapt to a future in which such events, once unthinkable, may become more common. It stood as one of the most striking extreme weather events of recent years.