NPR Spent 2 Years Tracking US Deaths From Heat, A Staggering Hidden Toll

"Thousands of Americans die every year from a chronically underreported cause: heat.

As summer heat intensifies because of human-driven climate change, the United States' official tally of heat-related deaths does not come close to capturing the full human toll. The data feeding into nationwide death counts is collected inconsistently and rarely thoroughly.

The result is a vast undercount of the number of people who die because of heat. And experts say failing to recognize and address this may cost more people their lives.

So NPR set out to create a more comprehensive national count."

Alejandra Borunda reports for NPR August 31, 2026.