At least a dozen people have died of heat-related causes in Texas and Louisiana as extreme temperatures continue to plague the country.
Eleven of the deaths took place in Texas’ Webb County on the Mexican border, according to local officials.
Hundreds of other Texas residents have been sent to emergency rooms, breaking previous records.
The current weather is the result of a heat dome, in which high pressure is trapped because of wind patterns.
In Webb Country which is centered on the city of Laredo – the heat-related fatalities ranged in age from 60 to 80.
“We don’t see this in our county,” county medical examiner Dr Corinne Stern said at a meeting of local officials on Tuesday.
“Laredo knows heat. Webb County knows heat. And I think our county was caught a little off guard.
“These are unprecedented temperatures here due to this dome of high pressure.”
The dead have also included a man and his stepson, 14, who died while hiking in Texas’ Big Bend National Park.
Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that Texas averaged about 837 heat-related visits per 100,000 visits between 18 and 24 June, compared to about 639 during the same time period last year.
Two other deaths, a 62-year-old woman and a 49-year-old man were also a result of the heat in Caddo Parish, Louisiana, according to CBS, the BBC’s US partner.
BBC/Adebukola Aluko
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