Texas heat-related deaths reached a two-decade high in 2022 amid extreme temperatures
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by Alex Nguyen and Erin Douglas, The Texas Tribune
January 27, 2023
Heat-related deaths in Texas last year reached a new high for this century amid a sharp rise in migrant deaths and soaring temperatures enhanced by climate change, according to a Texas Tribune analysis of state data going back to 1999.
In 2022, Texas saw its second-hottest summer on record during the state’s worst drought in more than a decade, according to data provided by state Climatologist John Nielsen-Gammon. Climate change has increased the risk for extreme temperatures across Texas, causing higher overall temperatures and summer heat that starts earlier in the spring and lasts longer into the fall — and makes people more likely to experience heat exhaustion and heatstroke.
At least 268 heat-related deaths were recorded last year, the highest annual toll for the state since at least 1999, according to data from the Texas Department of State Health Services.
https://sanantonioreport.org/2022texas-heat-deaths-record-highs/
