Dangerous heatwave scorches US as Fourth of July holiday kicks off

Saturday might see the heat breaking in some central areas, but not in the east where it will be dangerously hot for those at outside events.

The other concern is severe thunderstorms on the northern plains, the Midwest and across to the Great Lakes. These will bring a dramatic end to the heat – damaging hail, destructive winds, flash flooding and even a few tornadoes.

By Sunday the heat will intensify in Virginia, the Carolinas and the southeast before building in western parts of the USA and Canada into next week.

America’s northern neighbour, Canada, has also been seeing extreme heat this week, with temperatures in Ontario expected to hit mid 30s Celsius (over 90F).

Heat warnings are also in place across much of Quebec, including Montreal and Quebec City.

On Friday morning, more than 51,000 Hydro-Québec customers were still without power due to the aftermath of the thunderstorms. The Laurentians, Lanaudière, and Laval remained the hardest-hit regions.

In a statement to CityNews, Hydro-Québec spokesperson Audrey St-Pierre said that at its peak around 9 p.m. Thursday, more than 137,000 customers in the province were without power.

“Outages were caused primarily by strong wind and lightning,” St-Pierre added.

Heatwaves have become more frequent, more intense, and last longer because of human-induced climate change. The world has already warmed by about 1.1C since the industrial era began and temperatures will keep rising unless governments around the world make steep cuts to emissions.

Temperatures in the north-east will drop a couple of degrees on 4 July with the threat of severe thunderstorms. Temperatures will still be well above average, though with a more significant drop on Sunday and Monday as cooler air moves down from the north.

How is the heat affecting your fourth of July plans? Get in touch by using this link or the form below.