More than 90 million people from California to Kentucky are under alerts for dangerously hot conditions.
Southern California is experiencing temperatures 20 degrees above average and very rare humidity, with some local meteorologists calling this some of the most extreme conditions they can remember.
A person pours a bucket of water over himself from a fire hydrant to cool off in downtown Los Angeles, Aug. 24, 2026.
Jae C. Hong/AP Photo
On Wednesday, the heat index — what temperature it feels like with humidity — is forecast to hit 113 degrees in Los Angeles, 102 degrees in San Diego, and 116 in Indio, California.
Wednesday afternoon heat index.
ABC News
Extreme heat warnings are in place from San Diego to Las Vegas to Phoenix while a heat advisory is in place across California, from Bakersfield to San Francisco to Sacramento.
People pack La Jolla’s Windansea Beach on a hot and humid summer day, September 5, 2026 in San Diego.
Kevin Carter/Getty Images
Cooler air will move in for Northern California and Southern California by Saturday, with the temperature forecast to drop to 85 degrees in Sacramento and 89 degrees in Burbank.
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This extreme heat is also expanding east to the middle of the country. On Wednesday, the heat index is forecast to soar to 106 degrees in Dallas and Little Rock, Arkansas; 105 degrees in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; 104 in Memphis, Tennessee; and 102 in Louisville, Kentucky.
Feels like conditions.
ABC News
Thursday may bring a break in the heat for some cities like Oklahoma City, but the high heat and humidity are likely to return Friday through Sunday.
