The Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division, and the National Weather Service have declared June14, 2012 as Heat Awareness Day in Iowa. Extreme heat is a seasonal hazard in Iowa which is often underestimated. Understanding heat safety is important and can save lives.
On June 14, 2012, the National Weather Service in Des Moines will issue a Public Information Statement concerning heat safety. Media interviews are also encouraged to increase awareness about this weather threat.Here is an informative brochure about heat risks and protective measures Summertime in Iowa means two things: heat and humidity. These two weather parameters combine to create the Heat Index (Apparent Temperature), which is an accurate measure of how hot it really feels when relative humidity is combine with the actual air temperature. The combination of extreme heat and humidity conspire to tax the human body beyond its natural cooling abilities. Heat related deaths account for many deaths and injuries each year. Visit our heat safety page on our website by clicking here. Some safety tips during heat waves include:
To calculate heat index, you only need two numbers: the current temperature and current relative humidity. You can find those by clicking on “Observations” in the left-hand navigational menu, or by clicking here. Then return to this chart to find the current heat index on the chart below. Additionally, on the aforementioned observation page, the heat index (if there is one) will be listed on the far right side of each observation in the remarks section. The Heat Index will be prefaced with “HX“. Heat Index Chart |