Heat wave hits Northwest, sending people to cooling centers

By GILLIAN FLACCUS
Associated Press

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — People have headed to cooling centers as the Pacific Northwest began sweltering under another major, multiday heat wave. The hot weather comes just over a month after record-shattering hot weather killed hundreds of the region’s most vulnerable people. Temperatures in Portland, Oregon, are expected to hover near 100 degrees Fahrenheit Wednesday. The National Weather Service says the temperature could reach as high as 111 in parts of western Oregon this week before a weekend cooldown. Seattle will be cooler than Portland, with temperatures in the mid-90s. But many people don’t have air conditioning, and they began coming to air-conditioned centers stocked with water.