For everyone pining for wherever our cool July went, it’s probably time to stop. The National Weather Service says summer, and the heat and humidity that accompany it, are here.
That heat and humidity led to at least one heat advisory — when the heat index reaches at least 108 degrees — this week.
While Beaumont hit that level on Tuesday, forecasters weren’t expecting to reach that point at all on Wednesday, said Andy Tingler, a forecaster with the weather service's Lake Charles office. But it’s not like a few degrees difference makes a major difference, he said.
"The dew point is slightly lower so we might have a somewhat drier air mass," he said.
Still, it'd take an extraordinarily sensitive person to detect what your already-sweaty self isn't telling you.
The heat advisory begins when air saturated with water vapor prevents a person from perspiring enough to cool down your body. At that point, experts recommend avoiding outdoor exertion, drinking water and finding shade. Alternatively, you can head indoors and in some air-conditioning, said Tingler said.
For the Beaumont area and Southeast Texas, the relative humidity was at 68% on Wednesday. That generally means that two-thirds of our air mass is saturated with water vapor.
On Monday, a front from the north is expected to push in, bringing rain chances near 60% through Wednesday, he said.
Behind that, drier air should arrive, but it isn’t expected to bring much change in daytime temperatures.
People usually can tell when the heat and humidity is overtaking them, but it’s harder to tell when animals are heat distressed, said Breanna Porter, intake and transportation coordinator for the Humane Society of Southeast Texas.
"We've gotten a lot of phone calls from people whose pets are distressed," she said. "If it's too hot for people, it's too hot for animals.".
Porter recommends that dog owners ensure there is plentiful shade — enough to keep up with the sun’s changing direction — plenty of fresh water and perhaps a kiddie pool the dog can lay in.
If your dog becomes lethargic or unresponsive, douse it with room-temperature water, because cold water could cause shock, she said.
Cats, most likely, aren't going to get into a kiddie pool. So, placing a box fan in a shaded area will help them, she said.
Dan Wallach is a freelance writer.