"The Morning Call Inc., Copyright 2002"
Date: WEDNESDAY, July 22, 1987
STICKY WEATHER CAUSES HEAVY USE OF ELECTRICITY
HOT, HOT, HOTTER, HOTTER, HOTTEST
The Morning Call
This week's hot, sticky weatherresulted in a fifth and possibly a sixth broken record for Pennsylvania Power & Light Co.'s summer of 1987 power consumption.
And while Allentown area hospitals reported no recent victims of the heat, city health personnel offered some guidelines for staying healthy.
The elderly and the young are the most susceptible to heat-related problems, said Carol Mayes, director of Allentown's Emergency Medical Services. ''We've had victims in the past, especially the elderly poor,'' she said. ''This is the weather for it.''
Although temperatures of at least 100 were noted on displays throughout the Lehigh Valley, yesterday's official high recorded by the National Weather Service at the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton Airport was only 94.
A thunderstorm in spots at about 3:30 p.m. cooled things off, said Charles Giannetta, meteorologist. He said temperatures through Friday may reach the low 90s each day.
The record high for yesterday was 101 in both 1930 and 1980, said Giannetta.
PP&L's new peak was reached yesterday between noon and 1 p.m., said company spokesman Bert Daday, with 4,515,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity used by PP&L customers across the utility's 10,000-square-mile territory.
At 4 p.m. yesterday, however, Daday predicted that peak could be exceeded by the 4 to 5 p.m. period of usage. ''We are hitting new peaks almost every day,'' he said.
The high rate of consumption is most directly linked to air conditioners.
Records most often get broken in the late afternoon, said William Scheffley, manager of system operation for PP&L. As the sun burns its way through the humidity, and maximum temperatures are reached, air conditioners are turned on or up.
Before this month's recurring heat waves, PP&L customers hadn't set a new summertime usage record for nearly two years. But in July alone, the mark has been surpassed several times.
A previous record of 4,330,000 kilowatt-hours was set on July 9; then 4,381,000 and 4,404,000, both on July 13; then 4,501,000 on Monday.
The 21 million customers throughout the Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland Interconnection power pool, a network of 11 electric companies, also set a new record, using 38,770,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity between 4 and 5 p.m. Monday.
Allentown Emergency Medical Services handled a few problems directly linked to the heat this summer, Mayes said, but none in the past few days.
The weather can be a contributing factor to a lot of things, especially breathing problems, she said. But precautions are effective.
Tom Morgan, associate director of the the Allentown Health Bureau, advised people to stay in cool places, reduce daytime activity, drink plenty of fluids and wear lightweight and light-colored clothing.
Air-conditioned stores or swimming pools can be refuges from the heat, he said. He warned against drinking alcoholic beverages, saying they tend to increase the rate of fluid loss.
Mayes listed heat-related problems, in order of severity, as heat cramps (painful muscle cramps), heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
Heat exhaustion, also called heat prostration, is the most common illness caused by heat, and occurs when the body loses too much fluid and electrolytes through fluid depletion.
Heat stroke is not as common, but very serious. If untreated, it will always result in death. It occurs when the body is subjected to more heat than it can handle and can occur during vigorous activity, particularly in a closed, hot and humid environment.
Mayes said heat stroke is likely to occur during heat waves, particularly affecting the elderly who live in buildings without air conditioning and with poor ventilation. Heat stroke also can be the cause of death of children left unattended in a locked car.
The warning signs of heat exhaustion often precede heat stroke. The symptoms of heat exhaustion include cold and clammy skin, a gray complexion, weakness or faintness accompanied by nausea or headache.
Heat stroke symptoms include hot, dry, flushed skin; rapid rise in body temperature, and loss of consciousness or responsiveness. The pulse will usually be rapid and strong at first, then fall rapidly, along with blood pressure.
Heat stroke victims must be cooled off as rapidly as possible with air conditioning or fans and wet towels, said Mayes. And they must get to a hospital.
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"WEATHER BY GIANNETTA"