VOA新闻杂志2023--Are American Cities Prepared for Heat Emergencies?

Planet¹ Earth's recent record-breaking heat is causing concern for scientists and others worldwide. In the United States, experts question if American cities are safe for their populations during heat waves.

A heat wave is a period of higher-than-normal heat that lasts for many days in a row.

In 1995, a heat wave in Chicago killed more than 700 people. Most of the deaths were in poor and majority Black neighborhoods. Many homes in those areas were without air cooling equipment.

And, the city's electric power grid² was unable to keep up with air cooling demands as well. Electricity outages resulted. Temperatures stayed close to 40 degrees Celsius³ for a week.

Chicago has made major changes since then. New operations include a huge public communication and relocation effort. They tell people when hot weather is coming and move them to safer, cooler living spaces when necessary.

Other cities in the country have established similar operations, including Los Angeles, California and Miami, Florida. A local "chief heat officer" leads planning and response efforts in those cities and others.

But some scientists and city planning experts worry that existing measures and policies are not enough.

Eric Klinenberg is a social sciences professor at New York University who wrote a book about Chicago's deadly heat wave.

"I don't know a single city that is truly prepared for the worst-case scenario⁴," he said.

In Chicago, city leaders worked to identify people who are in danger on very hot days. Those people get text messages and other warnings when hot weather is coming.

But a system that works⁵ in one place may not work in another, says anthropologist⁶ Bharat Venkat. He directs the Heat Lab program at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Venkat said many places suffer from what is called "thermal⁷ inequality." He said cities should spend money to protect their workers and people. That may sound costly⁸, but doing nothing will be even more costly, he said.

Cities in France, Germany and India all have new systems to keep people safe during heat waves. The changes came after heat events caused thousands of deaths in recent years.

Ladd Keith is a professor at the University of Arizona. He said the east coast city of Baltimore, Maryland, has a good heat warning system. Others such as Los Angeles, Miami and Phoenix⁹, Arizona do, too. But he said, "there are still over 19,000 cities and towns without them."

Inkyu Han is a health scientist at Temple University in Philadelphia. He said cities should make low-cost cooling units available to people who do not have much money. But there are simple things to do that can lower the temperature of cities, he added. Cities can plant trees and establish more green spaces, for example, especially in the areas where poor people live.

Han is one of a number of people who discussed the problems low-earning people face during very hot days.

Kate Moretti is another. She is an emergency doctor in the New England state of Rhode Island. The Atlantic Ocean helps keep summer days from getting too hot there. But when it does get hot, she said, people who are older, poor, work outside or those who are homeless "put a strain¹⁰ on the system." The hospitals see more people than they can handle for heat-related problems.

Robin¹¹ Bachin is a history professor at the University of Miami. Bachin said laws keep utility¹² companies from shutting off heat on very cold days.

However, when it is hot, there are not similar requirements. For example, she noted¹³ that there are not often rules requiring owners provide air cooling systems for renters.

She said the lack of protection from heat was extremely dangerous.

Klinenberg said throughout history, the heat waves in the U.S. have been short. But there could be problems in the future if it gets hotter and out-of-date electrical systems cannot keep up.

He noted that poor areas were most affected¹⁴ by Chicago's heat wave in 1995.

Noboru Nakamura is a professor of atmospheric¹⁵ sciences who studies extreme weather at the University of Chicago. He listed the city's improvements¹⁶ since 1995 but he said "resource inequity is something you can't really get rid of overnight¹⁷. And we still have the same issue that we had back then, today." He called it a "big, big, big unsolved problem."

Words in This Story

grid –n. the network of power centers and power lines that deliver electricity to homes and buildings

relocation –n. the act of moving something from one place to another

scenario –n. a description of what might happen

anthropologist –n. a person who studies humans and human culture

thermal –adj. having to do with heat

unit –n. one item of a product

strain –n. stress or something that is hard to manage

utility –n. a company that provides essential services such as power, water and gas

renter –n. a person who lives in a building or home owned by someone else

inequity –adj. describing something that is not balanced or fair

get rid of –v. to eliminate or end

1 planet   

n.行星

参考例句：

• Neptune is the furthest planet from the sun. 海王星是离太阳最远的行星。
• Rubbish, however, is only part of the problem of polluting our planet. 然而, 垃圾只是我们这个星球的污染问题的一个方面。

2 grid   

n.高压输电线路网；地图坐标方格；格栅

参考例句：

• In this application,the carrier is used to encapsulate the grid.在这种情况下，要用载体把格栅密封起来。
• Modern gauges consist of metal foil in the form of a grid.现代应变仪则由网格形式的金属片组成。

3 Celsius   

adj.摄氏温度计的，摄氏的

参考例句：

• The temperature tonight will fall to seven degrees Celsius.今晚气温将下降到七摄氏度。
• The maximum temperature in July may be 36 degrees Celsius.七月份最高温度可能达到36摄氏度。

4 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

5 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

6 anthropologist   

n.人类学家，人类学者

参考例句：

• The lecturer is an anthropologist.这位讲师是人类学家。
• The anthropologist unearthed the skull of an ancient human at the site.人类学家在这个遗址挖掘出那块古人类的颅骨。

7 thermal   

adj.热的，由热造成的；保暖的

参考例句：

• They will build another thermal power station.他们要另外建一座热能发电站。
• Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。

8 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

9 phoenix   

n.凤凰，长生(不死)鸟；引申为重生

参考例句：

• The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
• The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。

10 strain   

n.紧张，拉紧，血统；v.劳累，拉紧，过份使用

参考例句：

• Strain the fat off before you serve the soup.在上汤前把里面的油滤掉。
• He had a muscular strain.他肌肉过劳。

11 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

12 utility   

n.公共设施，效用，公用程序，实用品，实用；adj.多效用的，多功能的

参考例句：

• A fur coat has more utility in winter than in autumn.毛皮外衣在冬天比在秋天更有用。
• Utility bills didn't amount to much.公用事业的费用有限。

13 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

14 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

15 atmospheric   

adj.大气的，空气的；大气层的；大气所引起的

参考例句：

• Sea surface temperatures and atmospheric circulation are strongly coupled.海洋表面温度与大气环流是密切相关的。
• Clouds return radiant energy to the surface primarily via the atmospheric window.云主要通过大气窗区向地表辐射能量。

16 improvements   

增加或修改( improvement的名词复数 )； 改进； 改善； 改良

参考例句：

• improvements in efficiency at the factory 工厂效率的提高
• They've spent a lot of money on home improvements. 他们花了很多钱装修家居。

17 overnight   

ad.前一天晚上，一夜间 a.前一天晚上的

参考例句：

• She stayed overnight in the hotel. 她在旅馆过了一夜。
• Our success is not won overnight. 我们的成功不是一夜之间得来的。