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Prisoners In Texas, Florida Face Biggest Risk Of Increasingly Deadly Heat

"Almost 45% of detention facilities on US mainland suffered rise in hazardous heat days between 1982 and 2020, study says".

"Deadly heat is threatening the lives of America’s ageing incarcerated population, who are trapped in increasingly hot and humid conditions as the climate emergency escalates, new research has found.

Almost 45% of detention facilities on the US mainland suffered a rise in hazardous heat days between 1982 and 2020, with the south most severely affected. People incarcerated in state-run facilities in Texas and Florida are the most exposed to dangerous conditions.

Hazardous heat refers to the number of days a year when the indoor maximum wet bulb globe temperature exceeds 28C (82F) – the safe humid-heat threshold set by the US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (Niosh) for acclimated populations under moderate workload.

In facilities where detainees were exposed to at least one hazardous day a year, the average (mean) number of hot-humid days jumped from 77 to 100 a year in four decades, according to the study published in Nature Sustainability."

Nina Lakhani reports for the Guardian March 5, 2024.

Source: Guardian, 03/07/2024