July 2, 2018

This Week Is off to a Hellish Start and It’s Not Even Because of Politics

An insane heat wave is baking parts of the midwest and northeast with 100 degree temperatures

PPI via ZUMA Wire

This story was originally published by HuffPost and appears here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration.

A massive heat wave roasting the central and eastern U.S. this weekend with temperatures that felt like the triple digits is expected to linger at least into the July 4th holiday, weather officials said on Sunday.

Thermometers are expected to soar 10 to 20 degrees above normal through Monday, with record highs potentially recorded from the Great Lakes region to New England, the National Weather Service said.

On Sunday, temperatures in parts of New York and Connecticut, were forecast to hit up to 100 degrees but appeared to settle in the high and mid-90s by the late afternoon. Monday is expected to see the searing heat and high humidity continue, with temperatures again nearing 100 in New York’s capital of Albany. 

“Temperatures have not reached 100 F in Albany since 1953,” said AccuWeather Meteorologist Tony Zartman, “but the city will flirt with that mark both Sunday and Monday.”

Other areas may still feel like they’re at or above 100 degrees because of the heat index, which indicates what the temperature feels like. For many communities, the heat index is forecast to reach as high as 110 degrees.

“The combination of hot temperatures and high humidity will combine to create a dangerous situation in which heat illnesses are likely,” the National Weather Service said. “Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sunshine, and check up on relatives and neighbors.”

Philadelphia, which hit 92 degrees on Sunday with a heat index of 105, similarly sounded the alarm to its residents and visitors about the dangerous heat. The heat index is forecast to rise to 107 there on Monday.

In parts of Ohio, where temperatures were expected to reach the mid-90s, July 4th firework shows planned for Saturday were canceled because of the extreme heat.

In Chicago, where heat indexes were forecast to hit as high as 110 degrees, city workers on Saturday had to hose down a bridge because the extreme heat could cause the steel to expand.

More Mother Jones reporting on Climate Desk

WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

Wow.

And it is only because Mother Jones is funded primarily by donations from readers that we can mount ambitious, yearlong—or more—investigations like these two stories that are making waves.

About that: It’s unfathomably hard in the news business right now, and we came up about $28,000 short during our recent fall fundraising campaign. We simply have to make that up soon to avoid falling further behind than can be made up for, or needing to somehow trim $1 million from our budget, like happened last year.

If you can, please support the reporting you get from Mother Jones—that exists to make a difference, not a profit—with a donation of any amount today. We need more donations than normal to come in from this specific blurb to help close our funding gap before it gets any bigger.

payment methods

WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

Wow.

And it is only because Mother Jones is funded primarily by donations from readers that we can mount ambitious, yearlong—or more—investigations like these two stories that are making waves.

About that: It’s unfathomably hard in the news business right now, and we came up about $28,000 short during our recent fall fundraising campaign. We simply have to make that up soon to avoid falling further behind than can be made up for, or needing to somehow trim $1 million from our budget, like happened last year.

If you can, please support the reporting you get from Mother Jones—that exists to make a difference, not a profit—with a donation of any amount today. We need more donations than normal to come in from this specific blurb to help close our funding gap before it gets any bigger.

payment methods

We Recommend

Latest

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Get our award-winning magazine

Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.

Subscribe

Support our journalism

Help Mother Jones' reporters dig deep with a tax-deductible donation.

Donate