Dangerous, Historic Level Temperatures Expected in Western States

Several areas near the West coast are expecting to face dangerous and possibly record-breaking high temperatures in the coming days.

According to a map from the National Weather Service that was obtained by Axios, over 30 million Americans are currently under an excessive heat warning, many of which are located in states and cities in the Western portion of the U.S. Cities in Idaho, Montana, Nevada and California are currently forecasting upcoming days of record-breaking heat.

While speaking with Newsweek on Wednesday, Josh Weiss, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center said that the current heat wave in these Western cities is likely to be "a pretty long-lasting event."

The most recent wave of extreme heat comes a few weeks after several other parts of the U.S., mainly along the East coast, faced a similar heat wave.

Idaho:

Over the past few days, the National Weather Service in Boise, Idaho, has forecasted record-breaking temperatures for this week. In a tweet on Tuesday, the National Weather Service in the city said Boise was expected to see 104 degrees Fahrenheit on Wednesday, which would top the previous record of 102 degrees for the same day in 2004. Other cities in Idaho, such as Burns, Jerome, McCall and Ontario were also forecasted to have record-breaking temperatures throughout the week.

"The heat will stick around this week with record-breaking temperatures possible nearly every day. Take precautions to ensure you, your family, and your pets," the National Weather Service in Boise said in another tweet.

Montana:

The National Weather Service in Missoula and Billings, Montana, also predicted extremely high temperatures in the coming days, many of which could be record-breaking. In a tweet on Wednesday night, the National Weather Service in Missoula said that the city "set a new record high temperature of 97°F today (8/30)."

"The previous record high temperature for this day was 96°F (1955, 1940)," the tweet added.

Nevada:

Record-breaking temperatures were also forecasted in Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada, for the next few days.

"Expect it to be a hot one across the area today with highs around 8-10 degrees above normal. Could even tie or break daily records in some locations! Try to stay cool & remember to hydrate!" the Las Vegas National Weather Service said.

Similarly, the National Weather Service in Reno said that the city's International Airport tied the single-day record high temperature of 99 degrees Fahrenheit.

California:

In Sacramento, the National Weather Service warned of a "very dangerous heat risk," during the upcoming weekend.

September Weather

Weiss also told Newsweek that in the coming weeks as we move into September, the current wave of heat is likely to expand "across much of the Southwest...California, Nevada and then expand Northward into the interior Northwest, including Idaho and Montana."

According to Weiss, there was a recent climate assessment completed which showed that "climate change...does suggest that there will be more of these extreme heat events later into the Summer and the Fall."

Jonathan Porter, a chief meteorologist with AccuWeather, made similar remarks in a statement sent to Newsweek, where he said, "In many places, multiple daily records are likely to fall, some all-time September records may be exceeded and even some all-time temperature records can be toppled during the intense heatwave."

"Lives will continue to be threatened by the extreme heat," Porter said. "The risks associated with this heatwave are even more concerning than other heatwaves because this will be happening through the Labor Day weekend, a holiday weekend when many people are spending additional time outdoors and may be less aware of the heat risks.

"Additionally, many tourists and vacationers are expected to be visiting the impacted areas leading up to and through the holiday weekend who may be less accustomed to extreme heat and how to stay safe in the heat."