LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — "They’re getting more intense, they’re occurring more often, they last longer, they’re more expensive and they’re more deadly," Rep. Dina Titus said of extreme heat waves Wednesday morning on a town hall Zoom call.
Despite the chilly temperatures of December, this year's record heat is top of mind for community organizers and politicians alike, as climate trends project warming to continue across the globe in the years to come.
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“Now this extreme heat is killing a record number of people every year, and you know it kills more people than tornadoes and hurricanes put together," Titus said as part of the reason she is pushing new legislation for FEMA.
Right now, the federal agency does not recognize extreme heat as a natural disaster like hurricanes or tornadoes. Even though heat is the most deadly weather phenomenon in the country, and climate experts predict the warming trends will worsen over time.
Her bill, the Extreme Weather and Heat Modernization Act, would change that and help communities suffering from the impacts of extreme heat and extreme cold to get federal relief. She reported the legislation has passed through the Transportation subcommittee. Although it has passed over one hurdle, there are a lot of steps to go before it can be signed into law, and could take some time to come to fruition.
"We need to be sure that our communities have the resources to address this problem. Whether it's a cooling center or resources to help people in their homes to stay cooler, whatever it takes to bring down those body temperatures and save lives," Titus said.
So far, Clark County has reported 491 heat-related deaths this year. That number could go up, as 90% of cases take 90 days to investigate. And as many locals remember, cooling centers were forced to re-open as temperatures soared 15 degrees hotter than normal into the autumn months, keeping us in the triple digits through Oct. 6.
It's a mounting problem for health and safety, as workers remain exposed to extreme heat.
Nevada OSHA recently announced the first-ever worker heat regulations, but on Wednesday's call, organizers said it wasn't enough.
"Demands for breaks, shade and water, none of those three things are included within Nevada OSHA regulations. So while we do think this is a win for the movement and we have never gotten this far without the grassroots organizing and environmental justice champions that we have in the Nevada Legislature, we still think that this can be improved upon," said Jackie Spicer, Coordinator for the Nevada Environmental Justice Coalition.
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