Dozens of counties across south Georgia are under a heat advisory today as heat and humidity push the heat index well above 100 degrees.
What’s happening: Two advisories cover a wide stretch of the state. Coffee, Jeff Davis, Bacon, Appling, Atkinson, Pierce, and Northern Ware counties are under the first, where the heat index is expected to hit between 105 and 109 degrees from 11 AM to 7 PM. A second advisory covers a larger area of south central and southwest Georgia, including Terrell, Dougherty, Lee, Worth, Turner, Tift, Ben Hill, Irwin, Baker, Mitchell, Colquitt, Cook, Berrien, Thomas, Brooks, Lowndes, and Lanier counties. There, the heat index could reach 110 degrees, and that advisory runs until 8 PM.
What is the Heat Index?: The heat index refers to what the temperature feels like when the air temperature is combined with relative humidity. The thermometer in your car may report 90 degree temperatures, but the humidity means that to your body, it will feel like it is over 100 degrees. The heat index is sometimes called the “apparent temperature.” Often people will cite the heat index as the actual temperature. It may not be the actual temperature, but it is actually what the weather feels like.
What this means for you: Heat combined with high humidity can cause heat illness, which ranges from cramps and exhaustion to life-threatening heat stroke. Drink plenty of water, stay inside with air conditioning, and stay out of the sun during the hottest part of the day. Check on elderly relatives and neighbors, who face a higher risk in extreme heat.
The path forward: Both advisories expire this evening. Check the National Weather Service for any updates.
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
- B.T. Clark
- B.T. Clark
- B.T. Clark
- B.T. Clark
