Boston braces for seventh consecutive day of heat emergency

BOSTON — The city of Boston is bracing for its seventh consecutive day of a heat emergency.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has extended the heat emergency through Monday amid record-setting temperatures.

People tried to find ways to cope with the blistering heat on Sunday as the mercury rose to 100 degrees.

Boston EMS said it has responded to over 80 heat incidents directly related to the heat since the start of the heatwave back on Tuesday.

First responders suspect hundreds of other calls that have come in over the last week are related to the heat in some way.

“Since Tuesday, Boston EMS has experienced a 15-20% increase in the daily call volume with over 400 incidents each day,” said a statement from an EMS spokesperson. “The heat may not be a patient’s primary complaint however, a contributing factor to the person’s ailment. When we see days like the last six, even healthy individuals succumb to heat related illnesses.”

The heatwave is also being linked to power outages across Boston over the weekend.

One left about 1,700 people in a Dorchester neighborhood without power through the heat of the afternoon into the early evening on Sunday.

“Let me tell you how hot it was. The walls on the third floor were so warm it was like feeling your oven on,” said Fields Corner resident Evelyn Davis.

Eversource said it restored power to approximately 19,000 customers in the area through Sunday afternoon and evening using automatic and remote switching.

“With the region continuing to experience extreme heat today, our system operators are closely monitoring the system and using remote switching capabilities to ease demand or load in local areas when possible. We continue to perform system maintenance and make repairs to the electric system as necessary to ensure we continue to provide safe, reliable service,” said a statement from an Eversource spokesperson.

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