The heat wave that has brought days of torrid temperatures from the Plains to the Northeast took a punishing toll on the region, knocking out power for thousands and making life miserable for millions.
Temperatures in the 90s and low 100s and stifling humidity created unbearable conditions Tuesday, and relief wasn't expected in parts of the East until Friday.
On Tuesday, searing heat stretched from the Dakotas and Minnesota to Philadelphia and New York, where the temperature hit 99 degrees in Central Park. The humidity made temperatures feel even hotter, with most states experiencing heat indexes of more than 100 degrees.
"There's folks out here getting overheated. It's dangerous," said Madison County coroner Jimmy Cornelison. "If you walk out there right now and you're doing strenuous work and you don't compensate with fluids, you're asking for trouble. It's hot. It's bad hot."
The heat wave was blamed for at least six deaths in the Midwest last week, including NFL player Korey Stringer, who collapsed from heat stroke on the first day of practice. On Monday, the death of a 33-year-old man working on a roof in Slate Lick, Ky., was blamed on the heat.
In Newark, N.J., where the heat index reached 106 degrees on Tuesday, six firefighters suffered heat exhaustion after battling a house fire.
The heat led to blackouts elsewhere in New Jersey and Minnesota. About 12,000 customers lost power in Camden and Hoboken, N.J., on Tuesday, but had it restored. Wednesday was the third consecutive day without power for about 3,700 Xcel Energy customers in Minnesota.
Boston declared its first heat alert of the summer as temperatures exceeded 90 degrees for the third consecutive day. The weather pushed electricity demand to record levels across the Northeast, but grid operators battled the shortage by purchasing power from Canada.
"There's a little bit of extra juice floating around out there, some from our neighbors to the north (Canada). But, boy, it's tight," said Steven Sullivan, spokesman for the New York Independent System Operator.
Pennsylvanians were girding for the longest stretch of 90-degree days in at least six years. In Philadelphia, workers from a community group fanned out Tuesday, distributing jugs of water to the homeless.
"If we worked a horse in this heat, we'd go to jail," construction worker David Stacey said in Harrisburg, Pa., his T-shirt soaked with sweat. "But we don't really have a choice. We've got to be outside."
At the Fairfax Pool in Eau Claire, Wis., manager Tara Edberg said some of her lifeguards had grown dizzy and vomited because of the heat. Elsewhere, high school football coaches canceled outdoor practices.
Jefferson City, Mo., mail carrier Craig Holliday, 51, found no relief inside his postal truck: "It's like driving around in a little oven."
Air conditioners have become a hot item since the onslaught of heat, but many customers looking to cool down have found nothing but empty shelves.
"From what I'm hearing from customers, everybody's out of them," said Jim Meer, the Sears store owner in Willmar, Minn.
Some managed to take the blistering weather in stride, including a group of senior citizens who took their weekly golf outing Tuesday to Ramblewood Country Club in Mount Laurel, N.J.
"My wife was ready to commit me this morning," Al Beich, 74, said after finishing the 14th hole. "I've had two beers, but I'm out of beer so now it's all water."
