It’s Time We Start Naming America’s Deadliest Climate Disasters

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Heat waves kill more Americans than hurricanes, tornadoes and floods combined. But despite their deadly toll, we rarely treat them with the urgency they demand. Eric Klinenberg, a sociologist, has spent the better part of his career studying the effects of heat waves. In this episode, he argues that to take heat waves more seriously, we need to start naming them like we do hurricanes — a simple, zero-cost action that could end up saving lives.

(A full transcript of this audio essay will be available within 24 hours of publication in the audio player above.)

Credit…Illustration by The New York Times; photograph by Newsday LLC/Getty Images

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This episode of “The Opinions” was produced by Kristina Samulewski. It was edited by Kaari Pitkin and Alison Bruzek. Mixing by Carole Sabouraud. Original music by Efim Shapiro, Pat McCusker, Isaac Jones and Carole Sabouraud. Fact-checking by Mary Marge Locker and Kate Sinclair. Audience strategy by Adrian J. Rivera, Kristina Samulewski and Shannon Busta. The executive producer of Opinion Audio is Annie-Rose Strasser.

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