In July, Idaho endured multiple days of excessive heat watch warnings as relentless triple-digit temperatures baked parts of the state. While the sun invites beaches and summer fun, working outside in the heat can pose health and safety risks.
Heat is the leading cause of weather-related deaths in the U.S. according to the U.S. Department of Labor. In 2023, 207 deaths in the U.S. were attributed to heat-related causes — over two times the rate of people killed by rip currents, the second-most prevalent category as reported by Weather Related Fatality and Injury Statistics. Since heat does not require the presence of any particular geographic feature, it affects larger populations. According to Weather.gov’s Hazard Heat Report, none of the heat-related fatalities that occurred in 2023 were in Idaho; deaths mostly took place in the sun belt states like Arizona (100 deaths) and Nevada (33 deaths).
