No record high temperatures have been broken this week in Murphysboro, but the heat is still taking a toll on several people.
Daily activities, farming, and hospital visits have been affected this week due to the excessive heat warning that has been in effect.
Kelly Hooper, a meteorologist from the National Weather Service explained that because we have a high pressure and low humidity, we are seeing these kinds of temperatures.
High pressure equals clear skies and low humidity is because of the lack of moisture in the air. Those two combined has made 'dangerous heat', according to the NWS.
The low humidity, due to lack or rain has caused a slight drought according to Hooper. Lack of rain and possibility of a harsher drought is bad business for the farming industry.
President and farmer of the Jackson County Farming Bureau, Tom Fox says the crops are down about twenty percent this year because of the heat.
"There's not much we can do," Fox said. "Just wait until it rains."
All of the fields that are in ready condition have already been tended to this year, so work is not being withheld due to the weather, but the production of crop is hurt, said Fox.
Hooper said dead vegetation and hot temperatures can go hand in hand. When the crops are lively they put off moisture into the air which raises the humidity. But because a lot of the crops have died due to heat, the moisture in the air is low, causing high temperatures, which leads to low production of vegetation.
Heat not only takes its toll on crops, but on people as well.
Rosslind Rice, the communications coordinator for Southern Illinois Hospital said that more than half a dozen of people have been treated and released from St. Joseph's Memorial Hospital because of heat exhaustion. She also said that the majority of those patients were factory workers, although she couldn't release the name of the factory.
Rice said this was due to lack of water supplies and in order for the patients to be released, doctors had to get the patients hydration levels up and make sure they had ample fluids in their body.
Rice also encouraged people who feel they have suffered heat exhaustion or stroke to call 911, because it is a very serious illness.
This week is the hottest week that Murphysboro has seen this summer.
Wednesday saw a high of 103 degrees with a heat index of 111. The heat index is a combination of the actual temperature added to the relative humidity. Relative humidity is the temperature and moisture content in the surrounding atmosphere, according to the NWS.
There is a very complex formula for calculating the heat index. Most weather services provide this information when giving the weather because even though the thermometer may read for instance in the low 80s, it is very possible for the heat index to be in the upper 90s or higher, which means that is what the temperature actually feels like.
Hooper, of the NWS said there is a small cold front coming in today. This will lower the temperatures to the mid to lower 90s. This 'cold front' will last until Sunday. Monday we are likely to see temperatures in the upper 90s and maybe even three digits again. There is a possibility of isolated thunderstorms today, and if that occurs temperatures will cool down a little more.
If we do see thunderstorms the pressure in the air should decline, with that may come some wind damage, Hooper said. He said low pressure often causes more wind, but he also said its about 5 percent likely that anyone will even see a thunderstorm.
Considering heat is the number one killer when it comes to weather related activity, and claims on average about 237 lives per year, there are several precautions to be taken when considering fun in the sun, according to the NWS.
Parents should make sure that seating surfaces or equipment for children are not too hot for the children to be on or around. Never leave a child unattended in a vehicle that is closed up. Cracking the windows does not help this.
Teach children not to play in or around cars and keep keys out of their reach. Always lock the car doors and trunks as to make sure children do not get trapped in a parked vehicle.
Hyperthermia has taken the lives of children and adults alike, often from either being left in an un-airconditioned vehicle or falling asleep in one. Hyperthermia occurs when the body absorbs more heat then it can release. This can happen without the victim knowing.
The NWS says that adults should also take precautions to help avoid heat disorders. The first thing they mention is to slow down and do not exert too much physical activity when it is hot. Dress for summer; wear cool clothes that allow for air passage.
Do not expose yourself to too much sun and take breaks often in which you can rest in the air conditioning. Do not take salt tablets unless directed by a doctor, and if so, do not expose yourself to a lot of sun.
Lastly, for both children and adults, is to stay hydrated. Water is the best thing to drink when in the sun, but any non-alcoholic beverage will work as well.
"Be aware of your body; that you're constantly loosing fluids," said NWS meteorologist Pat Spoden. "Take breaks as much as you can."
Spoden also advises to limit time in the sun between the peak hours of the day which are between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. He says it is good to know your body and how your body reacts to heat, and to act accordingly.
The most common heat disorders caused by sun and a high heat index are sunburn, heat cramps, heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
Between the degrees, in Fahrenheit, of 80 to 90, fatigue can occur with prolonged exposure to the sun. Between 90 and 105, heat cramps, sunstroke and heat exhaustion can happen. One-hundred and five degrees and higher can include the above symptoms all the way up to a heat stroke, which is very likely, especially after 130 degrees.
"Heat index is something you have to watch out for," said Spoden. "Because whether your'e used to working out in (the heat) or not, you could actually die from it."
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No record high temperatures have been broken this week in Murphysboro, but the heat is still taking a toll on several people.
Daily activities, farming, and hospital visits have been affected this week due to the excessive heat warning that has been in effect.
Kelly Hooper, a meteorologist from the National Weather Service explained that because we have a high pressure and low humidity, we are seeing these kinds of temperatures.
High pressure equals clear skies and low humidity is because of the lack of moisture in the air. Those two combined has made 'dangerous heat', according to the NWS.
The low humidity, due to lack or rain has caused a slight drought according to Hooper. Lack of rain and possibility of a harsher drought is bad business for the farming industry.
President and farmer of the Jackson County Farming Bureau, Tom Fox says the crops are down about twenty percent this year because of the heat.
"There's not much we can do," Fox said. "Just wait until it rains."
All of the fields that are in ready condition have already been tended to this year, so work is not being withheld due to the weather, but the production of crop is hurt, said Fox.
Hooper said dead vegetation and hot temperatures can go hand in hand. When the crops are lively they put off moisture into the air which raises the humidity. But because a lot of the crops have died due to heat, the moisture in the air is low, causing high temperatures, which leads to low production of vegetation.
Heat not only takes its toll on crops, but on people as well.
Rosslind Rice, the communications coordinator for Southern Illinois Hospital said that more than half a dozen of people have been treated and released from St. Joseph's Memorial Hospital because of heat exhaustion. She also said that the majority of those patients were factory workers, although she couldn't release the name of the factory.
Rice said this was due to lack of water supplies and in order for the patients to be released, doctors had to get the patients hydration levels up and make sure they had ample fluids in their body.
Rice also encouraged people who feel they have suffered heat exhaustion or stroke to call 911, because it is a very serious illness.
This week is the hottest week that Murphysboro has seen this summer.
Wednesday saw a high of 103 degrees with a heat index of 111. The heat index is a combination of the actual temperature added to the relative humidity. Relative humidity is the temperature and moisture content in the surrounding atmosphere, according to the NWS.
There is a very complex formula for calculating the heat index. Most weather services provide this information when giving the weather because even though the thermometer may read for instance in the low 80s, it is very possible for the heat index to be in the upper 90s or higher, which means that is what the temperature actually feels like.
Hooper, of the NWS said there is a small cold front coming in today. This will lower the temperatures to the mid to lower 90s. This 'cold front' will last until Sunday. Monday we are likely to see temperatures in the upper 90s and maybe even three digits again. There is a possibility of isolated thunderstorms today, and if that occurs temperatures will cool down a little more.
If we do see thunderstorms the pressure in the air should decline, with that may come some wind damage, Hooper said. He said low pressure often causes more wind, but he also said its about 5 percent likely that anyone will even see a thunderstorm.
Considering heat is the number one killer when it comes to weather related activity, and claims on average about 237 lives per year, there are several precautions to be taken when considering fun in the sun, according to the NWS.
Parents should make sure that seating surfaces or equipment for children are not too hot for the children to be on or around. Never leave a child unattended in a vehicle that is closed up. Cracking the windows does not help this.
Teach children not to play in or around cars and keep keys out of their reach. Always lock the car doors and trunks as to make sure children do not get trapped in a parked vehicle.
Hyperthermia has taken the lives of children and adults alike, often from either being left in an un-airconditioned vehicle or falling asleep in one. Hyperthermia occurs when the body absorbs more heat then it can release. This can happen without the victim knowing.
The NWS says that adults should also take precautions to help avoid heat disorders. The first thing they mention is to slow down and do not exert too much physical activity when it is hot. Dress for summer; wear cool clothes that allow for air passage.
Do not expose yourself to too much sun and take breaks often in which you can rest in the air conditioning. Do not take salt tablets unless directed by a doctor, and if so, do not expose yourself to a lot of sun.
Lastly, for both children and adults, is to stay hydrated. Water is the best thing to drink when in the sun, but any non-alcoholic beverage will work as well.
"Be aware of your body; that you're constantly loosing fluids," said NWS meteorologist Pat Spoden. "Take breaks as much as you can."
Spoden also advises to limit time in the sun between the peak hours of the day which are between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. He says it is good to know your body and how your body reacts to heat, and to act accordingly.
The most common heat disorders caused by sun and a high heat index are sunburn, heat cramps, heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
Between the degrees, in Fahrenheit, of 80 to 90, fatigue can occur with prolonged exposure to the sun. Between 90 and 105, heat cramps, sunstroke and heat exhaustion can happen. One-hundred and five degrees and higher can include the above symptoms all the way up to a heat stroke, which is very likely, especially after 130 degrees.
"Heat index is something you have to watch out for," said Spoden. "Because whether your'e used to working out in (the heat) or not, you could actually die from it."
