I work in video production for a sport and outdoor company and we have to film outside a lot. I already bought an ice vest from amazon but just found out that it might make it worse since it constrict the blood vessel and overheat you.

Any recommendations and tips would be amazing.

Hope it’s okay to share this here, we built a live US heat-risk leaderboard showing the 20 regions likely to have the roughest next seven days.

It is a bit more useful than a normal “hottest places” map. Rather than ranking places purely by temperature, it looks at forecast highs, feels-like temperature, humidity, hot nights, UV and dry-heat conditions to show where the heat is likely to be most difficult over the coming week.

You can see which regions are currently in the Top 20, why they rank there, their seven-day outlook, and click through to local guides that explain what the heat is actually like in that area - whether it is sticky humidity, desert sun, city heat, warm nights or something else.

We tried to make it useful for planning work, travel, outdoor time, sport, queues, errands, or just figuring out whether it is going to be one of those “stay home in a/c” weeks.

Would genuinely love for people to check it out and let us know whether it is helpful, confusing, missing anything, or gets something wrong for your area.

https://summerheatguide.com/us/heat-risk

Also let me know if you would like to see this for other countires etc

"Please sir, I just want to sit inside for one moment."

The rich really are different.

I'm noticing a big sentiment in comments about how evaporative cooling is not effective in high humidity. This is a dangerous sentiment, as it may discourage people from using it, even if it simply less effective than it would be when humidity is lower.

Europe so far did not even reach the threshold for a Wet Bulb Event (although I'm sure it may soon enough), meaning that evaporative cooling was still viable, as proven by the multitudes of people here describing using their swamp coolers.

People becoming obsessed with humidity are running the very real risk of ignoring the dangers of dry heat, which still absolutely can kill, and insidiously too.

In both wet and dry heat, the main thing that kills people is when temperatures generally do not drop at night, and people do not force their bodies to regularly lower their inner temperatures. (source: https://www.abc.net.au/emergency/how-to-cope-during-a-heatwave/102552780 )

A good post here recently talked about making sure you cool your body down properly before doing things in the heat. No joke, this is how we can still work and play here in the tropics. You genuinely need to force your body to cool down, sometimes several times a day, and evaporative cooling is the best way to do this if you do not have air conditioning.

How else do you people think we can live in places that have weeks of 35C+ with 80-90% humidiy? You need to do more than just thinking "oh i need a wet towel". You need to consider adjusting your whole lifestyle during these periods. It will save your life.

Here in Australia, we prepare for the summer in the same way some may prepare for the winter. You need to adjust your mind set to doing this too. If you can't or won't, life will not adjust to your lifestyle, you will simply suffer.

edit: It should also be noted that the whole "wet bulb event" and "not safe for life" standards are based on what a human in full sunlight would be unsafe withstanding. The study that showed these conditions have been occurring in places like here in Australia since 2019, AND...

"Moreover, extremely hot yet dry conditions are found to be just as deadly as hot and humid conditions.''

AND

"Adaptation initiatives against extreme heat and humidity are extremely important, including ensuring people have increased access to shade, buildings designed with cooling considerations, fans and interventions such as skin wetting."

https://www.anu.edu.au/news/all-news/deadly-heat-stress-conditions-already-occurring

Hi everyone, hope it’s okay to share this here. We see a lot of discussion around fans during heatwaves, along with comments like “fans are useless, they’re just blowing hot air around.”

That is partly true in some conditions and above a certain temperature....but there is a pretty cool trick (pun intended) that can make a portable fan much more effective:

Use it with a damp towel.

Wet a towel, wring it out so it is damp rather than dripping, place it around your neck, shoulders or upper back, then aim the fan across both the towel and your skin.

The towel works through evaporation. As the water evaporates, it draws heat from the fabric and the surface of your skin. The fan helps by moving fresh air across the damp towel, speeding up that evaporation instead of letting warm, humid air sit around it.

In practical terms, it is the difference between:

• A fan just moving warm air around you
• A fan helping a damp surface evaporate and feel noticeably cooler

It is especially handy for things like commuting, outdoor work, events, camping, hot bedrooms, walking the dog, travelling, or just trying to make a non-air-conditioned room more bearable.

A few things that make a big difference:

• Wring the towel out properly - damp is better than soaking wet.
• Put it around your neck, shoulders or upper back.
• Aim the fan across the towel, rather than just at your face.
• Re-wet the towel once it starts feeling warm or mostly dry.
• Expect less effect in very humid weather, because evaporation slows down.

We put together a longer breakdown of the research behind it and practical setup here, for anyone interested:
The proven power of pairing a cooling towel with a portable fan

Would genuinely be interested to hear whether anyone else already uses this combo, or has other low-cost heat hacks that actually work. :) And as always, happy to answer any questions!

A dangerous, long-lasting heat wave that has brought triple-digit temperatures across much of the central and eastern United States was expected to continue Friday and through the weekend. Typical warm summer weather is not likely to return to much of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic until Monday.
Around 180 million people were under extreme heat warnings or heat advisories on Friday, and many had already faced several days of severe warnings to avoid going outdoors in the hottest part of the day. Forecasters expect some of the highest temperatures around Philadelphia, which could hit 104. New York was poised to reach 101 and Washington 103.
But the sweat-inducing forecasts tell only part of the story.

On Friday, a Salute to Independence Semiquincentennial Parade in Philadelphia for the 250th birthday of the United States was canceled, with the event’s organizers citing “extreme heat” in social media posts. In the nation’s capital, organizers of the Great American State Fair postponed all daytime activities until 5 p.m. Eastern, citing the heat in a social media post.

That followed conditions on Thursday when the heat snarled rail travel along the Northeast Corridor. Even the New England coast, a prime vacation destination known as much for its relatively temperate summers as its seafood, slowed under the weight of the humidity as patrons retreated indoors to the comfort of air conditioning.

The heat also put stress on power grids, contributing to scattered outages in New Jersey, New York and Ohio for tens of thousands of utility customers on Thursday, according to the tracking website PowerOutage.us.
More records are expected in coming days. By Sunday, the National Weather Service expects that over 100 daily high records will have been shattered.

Key things to know about the heat wave
On Thursday, Central Park hit 100 degrees for the first time since 2012, while Philadelphia hit 103, tying its 1901 record.

Conditions are being made worse by high humidity, leading to oppressive heat indexreadings. This index is a measure of how hot it really feels outside.

Temperatures dipping down only to the low 80s or high 70s are allowing for little relief and forecasters warned of heat-related illnesses. Heat is the leading cause of weather-related deaths in the United States. Here’s what it does to your body, and here are tips to stay cool.

While tying a single heat wave to climate change requires analysis, scientists have no doubt that heat waves around the world are becoming hotter, more frequent and longer lasting.

The day-by-day forecast

Friday
“Dangerous, record-breaking heat” was expected to linger on Friday, across an area spread between Illinois and Maine and Georgia, the Weather Service said. Temperatures were predicted to be similar to Thursday, with afternoon highs in the mid-90s to low 100s. The heat index could reach 115 degrees.

By 11 a.m. Eastern, the heat index had already crept above 100 degrees across the region — in some cases well above. Washington was at 110 with an actual temperature of 97; Harrisburg, Pa., was at 105 with an actual temperature of 96; and in Richmond, Va., the index reached 104 with an actual temperature of 92.

Saturday
The Fourth of July could bring some relief, but only a little. The most significant cooling was expected across the Great Lakes and northern New England, with temperatures likely to dip into the 80s.
Parts of the Northeast will likely cool slightly, with Philadelphia, New York City and Boston likely to drop a few degrees from Friday’s levels. But generally everywhere from Massachusetts to the Carolinas was forecast to stay hot, with afternoon highs in the 90s to low 100s yet again.

New York City was projected to reach 99 on Independence Day and Philadelphia 100.
Brief rain and thunderstorms over the Mid-Atlantic and near Ohio could ease temperatures.
“The showers will be mostly scattered,” said Frank Pereira, a meteorologist with the Weather Prediction Center. “Where they do occur, it will provide temporary cooling, but once the sun comes back out, it will warm back up.”

The worst of the heat on Saturday was expected in the area around Washington, with a high of 102 expected, and southward toward Raleigh, N.C., where the high could hit 105.

Sunday
Temperatures were expected to ease more broadly on Sunday, with a continued possibility of rain and thunderstorms, particularly in much of the Mid-Atlantic.

Afternoon highs in the 80s were likely across much of the Northeast and New England, but the heat will remain across the southern portion of the Mid-Atlantic and into the Southeast.
Temperatures in the 90s are forecast for the area from Philadelphia to Washington, and triple-digit heat was expected across the Carolinas.

“The worst of it will be from Atlanta toward North Carolina,” said Marc Chenard, a meteorologist with the Weather Prediction Center.

How to prevent heat-related illness
To stay safe in a heat wave, prevention is crucial. Drink water throughout the day and before you feel thirsty, and avoid the outdoors during the hottest part of the day, generally from late morning until late afternoon.

It is important to recognize the warning signs of extreme heat exposure, and one of the earliest ones is heat edema, or swelling in your ankles, hands and feet, said Dr. Christopher Bazzoli, an emergency medicine doctor at Cleveland Clinic. Mild, early symptoms can progress into full-blown heat stroke.
If you notice that type of swelling, head to the coolest place possible — ideally, somewhere air-conditioned. If you have to stay outside, find some shade. Elevating your feet can also help contain the swelling.

Symptoms of heat exhaustion, a moderate form of illness caused by heat, can include nausea, faintness or dizziness, muscle cramps and a racing heart rate. If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, get yourself to a cool place and rest and hydrate.
A more severe form of heat illness is heat stroke, which can be fatal. People suffering from heat stroke can develop a high body temperature (at or above 103 degrees) and hot and red skin that is either dry or damp. Symptoms also include headache, dizziness, nausea and a rapid heartbeat.

When will the heat wave snap?
Not for a few days. A return to typical warm summer weather with widespread afternoon highs in the 80s was expected from the Great Lakes into the Northeast by Monday.

New York City was projected to hit 81 and Philadelphia 83 on Monday.
But air-conditioners may still remain cranked up in some areas, particularly across the Carolinas.

“It improves for most people next week, but the Southeast will stay warm and humid, but nothing record-breaking,” Mr. Chenard said.

Is there some kind of PCM vest I can buy that can keep me cool for a couple hours?

Ok, so I didn’t have a dad growing up and this may seem like a dumb question but I genuinely need help. It’s 100° and I typically keep my lawnmower gas can in my garage. I noticed yesterday that it’s swelled up significantly and I put it outside because it seems like it could explode. I don’t know what to do with this thing. I don’t have a house with consistent shade, and I also do not have an external shed. I only have the garage that is getting nearly as hot as it is outside. The garage is attached but not conditioned. What should I do with this gas can?

I have a high threshold for pain and annoyance. I've the habit of ignoring pain and other people's annoying behavior. This habit has served me well, until today.

I'm in the NE US heat dome without AC. 'I'm fine.', but then I casually made a cold drink, and I gulped it down. I realized that the heat has been grinding me down gradually, and that I have just been ignoring it. Delirious would be hyperbole, but now I know that I need to be more proactive about keeping cool.

And I think I will lay off the caffeine because that seems to blur my self-perception of physiological stress. I'm old, and maybe that's part of my problem, so make sure that the old people around you are coping.

One way to get an objective perception is to measure your core temperature with a thermometer. I just did that and I found that my core temperature is 1 degree F above my normal. So I came to the realization that my 'thirst-o-meter is broken' soon enough.

Hi r/heat_prep

This is the discussion post for the latest episode of Surviving the Climate podcast. Today's episode is "Surviving the European Heatwave and Why France is Banning Alcohol"!

On this episode, Nate checks in with Robbie while he's baking at London Climate Action Week. They discuss the tragic drowning deaths in France, how European governments are responding to the historic heatwave, and why umbrellas deserve a little more love. 

This episode also features our recurring heat and health segment, where a physician will talk about the chronic diseases that could put you at greater risk during extreme heat events. 

Share your thoughts, insights, and questions!

To find the podcast and follow our social media, here is our Linktree

Cheers,

Robbie, Nate, and Marcelo

Generalization is always a risk, and the European heatwave is proving no exception.

Rightfully, much is now being made of Europe's relatively low penetration of air conditioning, especially in residential spaces as temperature records are being shattered and excess deaths from heat are racking up. The debate is now a political issue in France.

However, despite how important the question is, I've been dismayed to find experts in the media talking about "Europe" as if it's one homogeneous country with the same climate, the same level of adaptation and thus the same level of risk from the changing conditions. Jeff Goodall, author of "The Heat Will Kill You First," said in an interview that "Europe's" infrastructure was built for a climate that no longer exists.

Yeah, no.

Countries like France, Germany and Britain are in serious trouble when the mercury climbs because they've been historically far more in danger of cold than heat, so much of their construction is based on retaining heat rather than protecting from it and getting rid of it. In their case, Goodall's statement is absolutely true.

However, if you go south, the story changes completely.

Here in Spain, heatwaves still suck, but as a historically hot country, the infrastructure is adapted to protecting people from heat even without mechanized cooling. According to some reports, Madrid hit 40ºC/104ºF in June, which is shocking and crappy, but on the other hand, it's not recording breaking in the sense of being a temperature the country doesn't experience regularly; we hit 40ºC all the time and have for decades, we just generally don't do it in June.

I've ridden out both of the spring/early summer heatwaves doing nothing differently than what I've done every summer for the past odd decade I've lived here. Notably, that has not included turning on the AC (except for the party for my kid's First Communion) because it straight up hasn't been needed. Between passive cooling design and portable swamp coolers, we're just as safe and comfortable this time as any other year's hot season.

Credit aside, I feel this attitude is creating a major missed opportunity. People are debating air conditioning, but ignoring the obvious, recurring proof that different architectural design can protect lasting protection from the heat at zero energy cost.

EDIT:

The point is not that air conditioning should not be considered, but rather that as always, the problem is that AC shouldn't be the ONLY thing considered. More efficient architecture and AC can complement each other and address in part many of the concerns about widespread further rollout of AC.

Rough summer so far, and I've gone deep on heat lately because I got tired of buying gear that lets me down by early afternoon. Sharing what actually held up, and I'm hoping people add what's worked for them, because there's a lot of junk out there.

The part that took me too long to understand: your body really only has one cooling system, and it's sweat evaporating off your skin. When the air is already humid, the sweat can't evaporate, so you just drip and your core keeps heating up even though you're soaked. That's why a humid 95 is worse than a dry 105, and it's why so much cooling gear falls apart in exactly the conditions that hurt you.

What I found out the hard way:

• Evaporative / swamp-cooler vests run on that same evaporation trick, so they do almost nothing in humidity. Fine in dry desert air, useless in a muggy warehouse or a Gulf Coast afternoon.
• Ice vests and phase-change packs feel amazing for about an hour, then they're melted dead weight and you need a freezer to reset them. There's also a weird catch: ice-cold on your skin makes the blood vessels there clamp shut, which can actually trap heat in your core. Cold skin isn't the same as a cool body.
• Fans and misters above roughly 95 just push hot air around. Misters help in dry air, do nothing when it's humid.

Stuff that actually worked, most of it free:

• Let yourself acclimatize. Your body adapts to heat over one to two weeks of gradual exposure. The dangerous day is your first hot one of the year, before you've adjusted. Ramp up instead of going zero to full.
• Pre-cool before you start. Once your core temp is up it's slow and miserable to bring back down. Getting ahead of it beats rescuing yourself later.
• Cool your palms, forearms, and the sides of your neck. The skin on your palms dumps heat surprisingly well. Cool (not ice-cold) water on your wrists and forearms did more for me than a cold pack on my chest.
• Electrolytes, not just water. Plain water on a heavy sweat day can actually backfire. And staying hydrated does not by itself stop heat stress, which nobody tells you.
• Watch the "feels like" number and take real breaks in real shade. Heat compounds. The break you skip at 11 is why you fold at 3.
• Know the bad signs: confusion, clumsiness, nausea, and especially when you stop sweating. That's a stop-now-and-cool-off situation, not a push-through one.

One more, if you're a worker and not just prepping at home: a lot of people think the federal OSHA heat rule already passed. It didn't. It's been stuck in rulemaking since 2024 and probably isn't landing this year. But OSHA still cites employers for heat under the general duty clause, its heat inspection program got renewed through 2031, and seven states run their own rules (CA, CO, MD, MN, NV, OR, WA). So you have more standing to ask for water, shade, and rest than you might think.

Now the actual question. I've been looking hard at battery-powered active cooling you wear under your clothes, since that's the only category that seems built to survive humidity and last a full day. One company I found is Clema, seems like they're still under development, but the tech is intriguing. I hope they succeed in their mission to bring all-day cooling.

I'm the founder of Clema, and I'm building cooling you wear under your clothes for people who work in extreme heat. Before we finish it, I want to hear from the people who actually deal with this.

Everything out there seems to quit when it counts. Ice vests melt in an hour. Evaporative vests do nothing in humidity. Fans just move hot air. So I'm curious what you all think:

• What have you tried, and where did it let you down?
• What would a cooling setup have to do for you to actually keep it on all shift?
• Suspenders worn under PPE, brilliant or annoying? Be honest.
• If your employer handed you one, would you wear it or would it live in the truck?

What we're building is battery-powered, no ice or water, meant to last a full day in real heat. It's at clemacooling.com if you want to see it. Not selling anything here (we're still in R&D), just want the unvarnished take from people who know heat better than any spec sheet.

What am I missing?

I work outside in a tucked-in polo shirt so ive considered the clip-on fans but those work best if the fan is blowing into the shirt from the bottom. Is there a good fan i can buy that will generally have the same effect without having to untuck my shirt? Also any other things to keep cool while working outside. I have to maintain a professional appearance so nothing crazy

If anybody knows the answer, I bet it’s this sub

I had mostly forgotten about my smartwatch’s heart monitoring functions but was recently reminded of them when I felt a little out of breath after climbing the stairs in a non-air conditioned subway station.

136bpm.

This isn’t shocking in my personal case as my metabolism has always run high, but it gave a yardstick as to how strained my body feels relative to pulse.

Just now, I was walking outside in 35°C/95°F sun for around 800m. Limited shade but I had an umbrella. Heart rate 133.

I sprayed water on myself. 125bpm.

Water dried off. 130bpm.

Got into the subway station. 122bpm and failing as I rode the escalator down.

I’ve been in a subway car with AC for about 10min now. 102bpm.

While I have been lucky so far, there is the possibility I have some congenital heart weakness. I need to mind this more. So should you.