6/27/2022
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KREM
KHQ
The Center Square
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KREM
Moderate to high heat risk in effect today and tomorrow.
SPOKANE, Wash. — With an unusual start to the summer, the Inland Northwest is now starting to feel familiar seasonal temperatures. While Western Washington is currently in a heat advisory, the Eastern side of the state is warming up this afternoon and will peak up to 91 degrees on Monday.
The National Weather Service has advised of moderate heat risk today and high heat risk on Monday. This impacts those who are sensitive to heat or lack effective cooling and hydration methods.
While Monday will swelter up into the 90's, Tuesday will bring possible thunderstorms though northern WA and northern ID Panhandle. Effectively cooling down temperatures back into the mid 70's.
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KHQ
SPOKANE, Wash. — KHQ continues to partner with Northwest Harvest to help raise much needed funds and awareness when it comes to food insecurity. Our #FoodBucketChallenge is something anyone can become involved in.
Here are some facts about hunger in our region:
1 million Washington residents visited a food bank in the past year.
One in 10 Washingtonians consistently struggle with hunger.
One in six Washington kids live in a household that faces challenges in putting enough food on the table.
One in eight Washingtonians live below the poverty line.
One in eight Washingtonians relies on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to purchase food. Half of all people on SNAP are kids.
Washington ranks 10th in the country in overall wealth—and ranks 34th in food insecurity.
A donation of $5 can feed a family of three.
Organizations like Northwest Harvest are crucial when it comes helping food banks in Spokane that directly distribute goods. Locations like ‘Our Place’ on College Ave say it takes a village.
“We rely on the community … individuals, organizations, churches, Northwest Harvest, 2nd Harvest, to keep us going,” Executive Director Tracie Swanson said. “We're expecting to see more people [in need] as we hit summer.”
Moms like Sharlene say they are not surprised to hear resources like Our Place are bracing for a spike in those they serve. She says it is becoming increasingly stressful for her family, and many others, to make ends meet.
“I see a lot of families who were at one point perfectly able to get food on the table and are now having a really hard time with it,” she said. “I work full time. My older daughter started working full time too, but between the two of us [pitching in] we still can only get the basic necessities that last about a week.”
She says she’s been forced to continually rework her budget.
“Once you add the cost of fuel to get to work, the store, and to run errands, it all adds up,” she said” And that [gas] money has to come out of my food money.”
But that's where spots like Our Place come in.
“I can go on [distribution days] after I get off work,” she said of the convenience with Our Place. “I really enjoy that you get to go pick out what you want [at Our Place.]”
And while the need is greater than ever these days, donations both physical, monetary and time, keep it all going. Swanson wants anyone out there going through tough times to know there are people out there who care.
“That is our mission, to treat people with respect and dignity,” she said.
If you’re looking for an easy way to give back and help people with food insecurity this summer, you can visit the Food Bucket Challenge page!
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The Center Square
(The Center Square) – As Western Washington is set to face its first hot weekend of the year, King County is developing an Extreme Heat Mitigation Strategy.
The plan involves various county departments, cities, non-profit organizations, healthcare providers and emergency responders collaborating to identify actions needed for an immediate response to extreme heat.
The collaboration will also look at adapting the area’s infrastructure so people and property are ready for prolonged heat waves.
“Last year we experienced the single most deadly climate event in our history, and these events are expected to be longer in duration and more intense going forward,” Jeff Duchin, health officer for Public Health in King County, said in a statement. “We must prepare both for the inevitable heat events that will continue to challenge us and also do what we can to minimize the risk for these becoming even more catastrophic in the future.”
In 2021, a three day heat wave killed 38 people in King County, the most fatalities from any climate-related disaster ever within the county.
The Seattle Weather Station recorded highs for the three day span from 102 degrees on June 26, to 104 degrees on June 27, to 108 degrees on June 28.
"The record heat we experienced late last June – our region's deadliest climate event to date – confirms that the threat is neither speculative nor distant, but certain and immediate. We can, must, and will confront the looming climate crisis with every available resource,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine.
King County has applied for a Federal Emergency Management Agency grant with an application including data from a 2020 heat mapping project conducted by the City of Seattle.
The data shows that “areas with hard landscapes held on to heat longer than areas that have more natural landscapes, increasing the potential for heat-related health risks in those areas . . . More urbanized areas were as much as 20 degrees hotter than less urbanized areas, due in large part to differences in land use and land cover,” according to Constantine’s office.
FEMA grants have never considered extreme heat in the hazard mitigation grant program history.
King County departments have already begun considering heat risk in their operations. For instance, the King County Metro Transit is using data from the heat mapping project towards bus stop designs and amenities to aid in extreme weather events.
The county is also looking to provide more equitable access to energy-efficient green homes that are designed to stay cooler during increasingly hot summers.
The Washington Department of Health said 91 people likely died from the three day heat wave of last year in the entire state, with the majority being in King and Pierce Counties.