New Jersey reports 29 suspected heat-related deaths after prolonged early July heat wave
Health officials in New Jersey have increased the number of suspected heat-related deaths associated with last week’s extreme heat wave to 29, on Monday, July 6, 2026. A prolonged heat wave brought temperatures above 38°C (100°F) and dangerous heat index values approaching 43°C (110°F) across parts of the state over the Independence Day weekend. Most fatalities are yet to be certified as heat-related deaths by the forensics department, hence the toll remains preliminary.
Image credit: Fatih Turan
The number of suspected heat-related deaths linked to last week’s prolonged heat wave has increased to 29, according to the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH). The heatwave lasted through the Independence Day weekend with high temperatures of over 40°C (104°F) in parts of the state.
According to the New Jersey Department of Health, the suspected victims ranged in age from their mid-30s to their 80s, with most deaths reported in Central and North Jersey. Officials said final determinations will be made by the Office of the Chief State Medical Examiner following individual forensic investigations.
The death toll rose after rising to 25 earlier on Saturday, July 4. Authorities stress that all cases remain under review and have not yet been certified as heat-related by medical examiners.
“Unfortunately, many of these individuals were found in homes without air conditioning,” New Jersey Health Commissioner Dr. Raynard Washington told reporters at the news conference on Saturday. “A few were outside their residences, some on the street, and some even in parked cars.
The fatalities followed several days of exceptionally hot and humid weather across New Jersey and much of the northeastern United States under a persistent heat dome.
Air temperatures exceeded 38°C (100°F) across much of the state, with some locations reaching 40°C (104°F) or higher, while heat index values approached 43°C (110°F). Warm overnight temperatures provided little relief, increasing the cumulative risk of heat-related illness.
The heat wave ended on Monday, July 6, as a cold front swept across the region, triggering widespread thunderstorms, torrential rainfall, and flash flooding across parts of New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. The storms caused localized flooding, transportation disruptions, structural damage, and power outages after several days of dangerous heat.
Extreme heat remains one of the deadliest weather hazards in the United States, causing more fatalities in many years than floods, tornadoes, or hurricanes.
Public health officials continue to advise residents to stay hydrated, avoid strenuous outdoor activity during the hottest part of the day, spend time in air-conditioned environments whenever possible, and regularly check on older adults, young children, and other vulnerable individuals during periods of dangerous heat.
References:
1 NJ reports 29 suspected heat-related deaths following extreme heat event – News 12 – July 6, 2026
2 New Jersey health officials increase number of heat wave-related deaths to 29 – NBC New York – July 6, 2026
Rishav Kothari is Editor-in-Chief of The Watchers, where he runs the newsroom and covers earthquakes, volcanoes, severe weather and space weather.
Published in the last 24 hours
- In February 2022, SpaceX launched 49 Starlink satellites into a solar storm so mild that forecasters rated it minor, and within days 38 of them had fallen back and burned up, because the storm had swollen the thin air they were flying through Epicenter
- On a Friday night in October 1992, a fireball over the eastern US was filmed by fans at high school football games before it punched through the trunk of a teenager’s $400 Chevy Malibu in Peekskill, New York, and she sold the wrecked car for $10,000 Epicenter
- Green Lake, Hawaii's largest freshwater lake, was gone by the afternoon of June 2, 2018, after lava from Kilauea filled its basin. The water was about 20 feet deep, not the 200 feet often claimed. Epicenter
- Flying glass cut a teacher in Russia but none of her 44 pupils, because when a meteor flashed across the sky in 2013, she told them to get under their desks Epicenter
