Temperatures soar in N. America - 7th July 2021

Sweltering conditions are wreaking havoc in western North America as an unprecedented heatwave, with temperatures approaching 50 degrees Celsius, engulfs the continent.

Seeking refuge from the furnace, residents of Portland, Oregon, are flocking to cooling centres, courtesy of the city authorities.

Jenny Carver works for Multnomah County Services.

Jenny Carver: On Friday around 1pm, we opened three cooling center locations throughout the county. Currently we're serving about 350 people across all three of those locations."

As temperatures shatter existing records stretching back to the 1940s, schools and coronavirus vaccination facilities paused services, while Olympic hopefuls bear the frustration of qualifying events being adjourned.

Ashley sought shelter from the intense heatwave.

Ashley: "I, I came here because - I, I have an apartment and I have box fans and ice, a freezer and everything - but it just, like, wasn't enough to keep everything cool. Especially at night, because it was like 90 degrees at midnight or some - or 80 degrees or something - it was crazy.

As unexpected deaths In Canada's western provinces rose into the hundreds - put down to the hot spell - Vancouver has installed drinking fountains and misting stations, where people can seek relief from the devastating temperatures.

Yet ice cream parlour proprietor Ian Widgery's unorthodox approach may hold more appeal.

Ian Widgery: "My gosh! The heat is crazy at the moment. And there's only one way to stay cool, which is by eating a lot of ice cream."

Creating a kind of 'heat dome' across a huge continental area, the static high pressure shows no sign of abating. Climatologists argue such events are consequences of global heating.