Death Toll From Calif. Heat Rises to 132
By OLIVIA MUNOZ, Associated Press Writer
Friday, July 28, 2006
(07-28) 10:48 PDT Fresno, Calif. (AP) --
The death toll from California's record-breaking heat wave reached 132 Friday, the first day in nearly two weeks that temperatures were expected to be below 100 degrees across most of the state.
The big jump in the death count came primarily from Los Angeles, Merced, and Stanislaus counties, where coroners struggled to keep up.
"This is unprecedented for the county," said Stanislaus County Office of Emergency Services spokesman David Jones. The county typically sees one heat-related death a year, he said. On Friday, he reported 29.
The vast majority of the deaths believed linked to the heat deaths involved elderly people whose bodies don't cope as well in the heat.
snip...
In Fresno County's morgue Thursday, the walk-in freezer was stuffed with bodies, with some piled on top of others, said Coroner Loralee Cervantes. With limited air conditioning, employees worked in sweltering heat as they investigated possible heat-related deaths.
more...
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/07/28/national/a102651D73.DTL