Cooling centers opened across New Jersey to offer folks refuge from the unrelenting heat. One Bergen County facility director says, “We’re supplying water, ice cream, fruit platters, anything to keep them comfortable and safe and out of this dangerous heat.” Most of New Jersey’s under a heat advisory on Wednesday, but on Thursday, the National Weather Service forecasts, two-thirds of the state will be under an Excessive Heat Watch.
In terms of the Heat Index — it’ll put people at a high risk of heat stroke, warns meteorologist Steve Decker: “Temperatures will be in the mid-to-upper 90s. To our bodies, it will feel like around those record temperatures of 105 degrees or so. People will want to stay in the shade, stay indoors, stay in a cool location and take it really easy — drink lots of fluids.”
President Joe Biden addressed climate change on Wednesday — vowing to use his executive powers after West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin blocked proposed White House legislation. The president announced new federal programs to boost offshore wind power and set safe workplace standards for extreme heat. He also promised $385 million to help communities cope with soaring temperatures.
