In June of 2021, a heat wave hit the Pacific Northwest causing record breaking temperatures and the deaths of 19 of our neighbors in Spokane County. Even though the event was due to a rare combination of weather of events, it revealed the need for our area to prepare for extreme heat, especially since summers are getting warmer in the Inland Northwest. Spokane Regional Health District (SRHD) is excited to work with Gonzaga University’s Climate Center as they help our community do just that through their Beat the Heat Initiative.

Spokane Beat the Heat has worked with many local and national partners to produce maps of what areas in the city of Spokane get hotter than others and conducted community-wide surveys and discussions on what people think of extreme heat and how they’ve dealt with it. SRHD plans to use this information to help educate and provide resources for the community. We’re excited to invite the community to join us as we beat the heat together.

SRHD is parenting on a climate project because extreme heat can impact health in so many ways. It can directly cause things like heat stroke and heat exhaustion, and it can worsen some health problems such as respiratory and cardiovascular issues. There are also accidents that happen due to heat, especially on job sites where tools might slip because of sweaty hands, surfaces could be hot enough to cause burns, or other conditions can easily cause mishaps. In fact, according to the CDC, on average, over 67,000 people in the U.S. on visit emergency departments and over 9,000 people are hospitalized each year due to heat.

SRHD Extreme Heat for more information about extreme heat & how to prepare.

Gonzaga University Beat the Heat for information on the Beat the Heat initiative.

CDC Heat and Health Tracker to find local heat and health related trends and forecasts.

CDC Climate Change and Extreme Heat: What You Can Do to Prepare for a helpful overview and guide on extreme heat.