Heat poses risk in powerless areas

Storm-ravaged Houston opens cooling centres as humidex predicted to hit 38 C this week

- LEKAN OYEKANMI, DAVID J. PHILLIP AND KEN MILLER

High-voltage transmission lines were twisted and toppled after powerful storms swept through the Houston area on Friday. More than a half-million homes and businesses remained without electricity by midday Saturday.

As the Houston area works to clean up and restore power to hundreds of thousands after deadly storms left at least seven people dead, it will do so amid a smog warning and scorching temperatures that could pose health risks.

National Weather Service meteorologist Marc Chenard said on Saturday that highs of about 32 C were expected through the start of the coming week, with heat indexes likely approaching 38 C by midweek.

"We expect the impact of the heat to gradually increase... we will start to see that heat risk increase Tuesday into Wednesday through Friday," Chenard said.

The heat index is what the temperature feels like to the human body when humidity is combined with the air temperature, according to the weather service. "Don't overdo yourself during the cleanup process," the weather service's Houston office said in a post on X.

In addition to the heat, the Houston area could face poor air quality.

Heavy rainfall was possible in eastern Louisiana and central Alabama on Saturday, and parts of Louisiana were also at risk for flooding.