Deadly heat wave: Mexico says more than 100 people have died so far this year from high temperatures

Heat-related deaths in Mexico have tripled compared to 2022. According to a report unveiled Wednesday by the country's health authorities, since March 2023, the number of people who died from "natural extreme temperatures" stood at 112.

Although the report notes that deaths from high temperatures began in March, there has been a significant increase in the number of deaths since a few weeks ago, when the heat wave that also reached the southern United States began.

Thus, during the week of June 18-24, 69 deaths caused by high temperatures were recorded. The previous week, although milder, 31 deaths were also reported due to the heat wave that caused temperatures up to 105 degrees Fahrenheit throughout Mexico.

By states, the most affected was Nuevo León, with more than 64 deaths caused by the heat wave. Deaths were also reported in Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Tabasco, Oaxaca, Quintana Roo, Sonora and Campeche.

AMLO discredited reports of heat-related deaths in Mexico

The report follows statements made by Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO). He assured last week that the reports were false and were simply an attempt to discredit his administration: "There is an alarmist, yellow-journalism trend," he declared while affirming that the number of deaths due to the heat wave was lower than the one reported by the media.

The heat wave is not the only one to blame for the number of deaths in Mexico. The AP points out that the high temperatures are combined with the delay in the onset of seasonal rainfall, a meteorological phenomenon that arrives in Mexico in mid-June and tends to cool down a bit the hot environment that has caused not only 112 deaths but the need for medical care for an additional 1,559 people in the country.