Seattle is experiencing more frequent 90-degree days, prompting renewed warnings about the dangers of heat-related illnesses.
Residents are advised to take precautions when spending time outside or indoors during the unseasonably hot weather.
Signs of heat exhaustion include muscle cramps, headaches, dizziness, weakness, fatigue, and nausea. The most serious heat-related illness is heat stroke, which can cause confusion, dizziness, or passing out and requires immediate emergency attention by calling 911.
Harborview Medical Center reported no significant increase in heat-related issues as of Tuesday morning.
While the recent high 80-degree to low 90-degree temperatures might not seem extreme on paper, they are considered hot compared to Seattle’s historical climate.
KIRO 7 Meteorologist Nick Allard noted that Seattle used to average four 90-degree days annually. However, since 2015, the city has averaged eight 90-degree days each year, doubling the previous normal.
Seattle residents have observed these changes firsthand.
Kris Parfitt, a Seattle resident, described how her family’s use of air conditioning has increased over the last decade.
“We had a portable air conditioning unit and we bought it about 10 years ago,” Parfitt said. “And we used it for one week out of the summer and then two weeks out of the summer and then three weeks out the summer. And so then we decided to buy one that goes in the window permanently. And we use a lot at night just to sleep because it’s too hot now.”
Sandy Stamato, a third-generation Seattle resident, recalled a different climate from her childhood.
“When I was a kid, it rained up till 4th of July,” she said.
As temperatures rise, so has the prevalence of air-conditioning. Census data shows that in 2019, only 44% of homes across King, Pierce and Snohomish counties had refrigerated air-conditioning or swamp coolers. By 2023, that number jumped to 64%.
Katie Reichert, a Centralia resident, expressed satisfaction with having built-in cooling.
“Now that we have it like just included in the house, it’s much, much better,” Reichert said.
For those without air-conditioning, alternative cooling methods can help.
Public libraries are operating as cooling shelters and placing a bowl of ice in front of a fan can further cool the air.