Jefferson County - East-West Gateway Coordinating Council

A Regional Overview All-Hazard Mitigation Plan 123
TABLE TABLE J46 J46 J46 ST. ST. LOUIS LOUIS METROPOLITAN METROPOLITAN REGION REGION HEAT HEAT
HEAT
WAVES WAVES 11994
1 994 TO 2008 AND AND ASSOCIATED ASSOCIATED DAMAGES
DAMAGES
Date Date Deaths Deaths Injuries Injuries Property
Property
Damage
Damage
Crop
Crop
Damage
Damage
08/07/2001 1 10 0 0
08/12/2001 3 0 0 0
08/21/2001 0 14 0 0
05/31/2002 2 0 0 0
06/01/2002 0 14 0 0
06/25/2002 1 0 0 0
07/08/2002 1 26 0 0
07/17/2002 1 0 0 0
07/20/2002 0 47 0 0
07/26/2002 0 185 0 0
08/01/2002 1 59 0 0
08/26/2002 1 0 0 0
07/03/2003 3 93 0 0
08/15/2003 2 54 0 0
08/24/2003 0 0 0 0
07/09/2004 1 45 0 0
07/20/2004 0 25 0 0
06/06/2005 1 0 0 0
06/23/2005 0 0 0 0
07/20/2005 4 65 0 0
07/13/2006 4 437 0 0
07/29/2006 1 14 0 0
08/01/2006 0 59 0 0
08/07/2006 1 0 0 0
05/12/2007 0 2 0 0
05/13/2007 0 0 0 0
08/04/2007 2 519 0 0
07/20/2008 0 60 0 0
Totals 128 3571 5.09M 875K
Source: NCDC
There are several impacts on transportation documented in case studies. Aircraft lose lift at
high temperatures. The Phoenix airport has been closed due to periods of extreme heat
that made aircraft operations unsafe. Highways and roads are damaged by excessive heat.
Asphalt roads soften. Concrete roads have been known to "explode" lifting –three to four
foot pieces of concrete. During the 1980 heat wave hundreds of miles of highways buckled
(NOAA, 1980). Stress is placed on automobile cooling systems, diesel trucks and railroad
locomotives. This leads to an increase in mechanical failures. Train rails develop sun kinks