More than 400 people are suspected to have died due to extreme heat in the Phoenix area so far this year.
Temperatures have hit over 110 degrees everyday so far this month in Maricopa County, Arizona, save for one day, including an all-time monthly high of 118. At least three daily records have been broken in August as well.
So far this year, the Maricopa County medical examiner’s office has confirmed 35 heat deaths, 17 of which were directly caused by extreme heat, and 18 cases in which heat contributed to the death. An additional 369 are suspected to have died from heat-related causes, but those deaths remain under investigation per the county’s heat surveillance dashboard.
“With this many cases still under investigation and it only being mid-August, there’s a lot that could still happen,” Dr Nick Staab, Maricopa County’s chief medical officer, told KJZZ, a Phoenix area radio station.
Heat-related deaths have drastically increased over the past decade in Maricopa County. The county saw 645 heat-related deaths in 2023 compared to 61 in 2014. County officials confirmed 602 heat-related deaths in 2024.
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The 2025 figures are about 30% lower than this time last year.
Temperatures this summer have been cooler than last year, but this summer is still expected to be one of the hottest recorded for the Phoenix-area.