Heat Wave Too Much For Most

Ronald Mailman bought tickets to Thursday`s baseball game in March, when it takes more than a trip outside to break a sweat. As he trudged into New York`s Shea Stadium to watch the hometown Mets play the Milwaukee Brewers, it was 102 degrees.

"My wife is a big Mets fan so I was dragged to die here in the heat," said Mailman, of East Meadow, N.Y., who happens to root for the New York Yankees. "But we have plenty of refreshments."

Mailman had plenty of company in his misery. The heat wave that has baked much of the country for days was setting more records by early afternoon.

The mercury reached 102 in New York and 103 in Newark, N.J., breaking the record for the date of 100 set in both cities in 1949. Philadelphia hit 100, surpassing the record of 98 set in 1909. It was 96 in Boston.

"It`s cooler in Jamaica - that`s a fact," said Patricia Durrant, Jamaica`s United Nations ambassador. He was right: At noon, it was only 90 in Kingston.

Health officials sent workers to check on the infirm, elderly and very young, who are most vulnerable to heat-related health problems. Despite the precautions, the weather has taken a deadly toll.

Heat is blamed for a number of deaths, particularly in the Midwest. In Rowley, Mass., a 3-year-old girl collapsed and died Wednesday after her body temperature reached nearly 109 degrees as she played outside.

Meteorologists expected Thursday to be the hottest day of the heat wave. Cooler temperatures arrived in the northern Plains early Thursday and were expected to push across the rest of the East into the weekend.

The cold front already has caused problems in the Midwest. A state of emergency was declared Thursday in Grand Forks, N.D., after wind gusts of 101 mph and heavy rain knocked out power to thousands of customers.

Where it was hot, it was downright unbearable.

"It`s just overwhelming," said 36-year-old Joe Bengardino, who took a break from pouring cement to spray himself with water from a hose in Brigantine, N.J. "It takes over everything. You get less production. You can`t work as fast. It just really takes it out of you."

In Philadelphia, where baseball`s Phillies played the San Diego Padres, the temperature of the artificial turf was recorded at 148.7 degrees. The air temperature was a relatively balmy 95.

"There`s nothing you can do about it," Phillies manager Larry Bowa said. "You can stay cool between innings, in the dugout. There`s a breeze in the runway."

Meanwhile, the demand for air conditioning and fans was straining power grids. There were 7,000 morning outages in New York City and scattered outages elsewhere.

The heat and aging overhead wires stalled a Metro-North New Haven line train in Connecticut, stranding 400 customers, a spokesman said.

In New York and New Jersey, state government offices were shut down at 2 p.m. to help conserve energy. Energy officials in New England also made an urgent appeal for people to conserve as power use soared to a new record.

The heat wasn`t bad news for everyone. In Gettysburg, Pa., Roaring Spring Premium Spring Water has seen a doubling of new customers in recent weeks, including people who usually draw from wells that are drying up in the heat.

"They`re saying, `We need water now, we don`t care what price it is," said Jen Cassatt, who helps handle orders for the company.

But people happy about the heat were the exception. Participants in a sand sculpture contest near Boston`s Fan Pier admitted it was making them a bit cranky.

"We`re in a parking lot in Boston, building a sand sculpture on the hottest day of the summer," said Justin Gordon, who was building a replica of Boston`s seaport. "How do you think we feel? We`re hot!"

(Copyright 2001 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Article continues below

---

advertisement

---

Author: 6 ABC - Action News