Mexico acknowledges 112 heat-related deaths so far this year, almost triple the figures in 2022

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s health authorities have belatedly released a report showing a significant spike in heat-related fatalities in the last two weeks. The report was released late on Wednesday and comes after the country’s president repeatedly downplayed the deaths from the recent heat wave. The Health Department normally issues a report on heat-related fatalities each week, but in June — at the height of the heat wave — it skipped a week, for reasons that remain unclear. The report says the deaths reached a peak in the week of June 18-24, with 69 deaths in one week nationwide, an unprecedented number. Temperatures in some parts of Mexico have risen to over 105 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius) in recent weeks.