Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-08-07
HOTTEST DAY IN
C|Ty'S HISTORY
Kiosk Thermometer in Capitol
Square Crawls Up to 116
Degrees and Quits.
OFFICIAL RECORD IS 1O7
Ambulances Kept Busy by Calls
From Those Suffering
From Prostration.

weather station in Chimborazo Park
registering 107 while that in the kiosk
In the Capitol Square, representing the
street temperature, climbed to lis. Both
figures are entirely without precedent
In the twenty-five years in which ac-
cIsate weather ngures have been kept
Since the present Weather Bureau was
organized here in 1905. only once in
August has the thermometer at the
official station gone over the 100 mark,
that having been on August "a, 1914.
when the record showed 1o1. yester-
days official figure having exceeded
that by six degrees.
Not only were all local records broken
yesterday. but, according to the
Weather Bureau, Richmond was yester-
day the hottest city in the United States.
Washington came a close second tho
thermometer theye pushing up to log,
and breaking all records for that swell
tering city. Chicago reported a total
of 1o2; Jacksonville. Fla. 96; Kansas
City. 100; Norfolk. SO. and Pittsburgh,
104, while st. Louis had a maximum OF
100.
MANY PROSTRATIoNS ARE
DUE TO THE INTENSE HEAT
Many prostrations from heat were re-
Eorted to the police, and the hospital
amoulances were kept busy yesterday
and last night. Many business men found
1t practically Impossible to continue at
.heir usual speed, and In factories work
was generally lightened. II not sus-
pended altogether. Soft-drnk places
did rushing business, many people
congregating wherever iced beverages
and electric fans could be depended on
to make living tolcrable. Others just
simply knocked of for the day and let
il go at that. In the election booths
the judges and clerks sweltered
through the unmerciful heat, listing
the voters and counting their ballots.
What's worrying me-" said an in
dividual in panama suit. leaning de-
iectedly against the shady side of the
kiosk in the Capitol Square yesterday
afternoon, lis how to get across to
that next tree"
The kiosk made history yesterday. AT
o'clock 1t registered l16 degrees. and
ness at ITO degrees. and still the sun
beat down from a pitiiess blue sky
as hard flint. and the scorching
heat waves beat up from the pave
ments like the breath OF furnace fires,
and the city sweltered In the grip OF
the hottest day OF the year-twenty-
six degrees above normal with the
relative humidity at only 16, which
gave the heat its peculiar scorching
quality.
ALL RECORDS BROKEN AT
TIE WEATHER BUREAU
The record at the kiosk is the aver
age street temperatures" At the
I
Chimborazo Hill, which is many feet
above the city, the official recore for
high temperature broke ell previous
records yesterday. passing the 100
mark between IL and IL o'clock In
the downtown districts thermometers
registered as high as 1l0 degrees in
the shade.
Ten cases of heat prostrations as the
result of the hottest day on record in
Richmond was the official report of
hospitals in the city at 80 o'clock this
morning. DR.. Joseph Hinchman, chief
inferno OF the Virginia Hospital, sup
piled most of the names and treated
most of the cases for heat prostrations
yesterday. At 1880 o'clock this morn
ing ne said that thirteen calls for heat
prostrations had been received at the
hospital. and that the ambulance was
out on four more calls and that he
would be unable to furnish a complete
official report until this afternoon.
Although most OF the cases Of heat
rrostrations were the result of the
heat of the monday and afternoon sun.
DIR. Hinchman gave out a warning to
the public against the prolific drinking
of ice water after being almost over
come by the heat. Late last night the
.,rS -, ,l,,,
number of cases of people who were
suffering from cramps and who had
been attacked with convulsions as a
result of the careless drinking of ice
water while in an overhcated condition
LARGE NUMBER OF CASES
TREATED BY PHYSICIANS
1t would be almost impossible to
give a detailed and complete record of
all the cases OF people overcome by the
heat and who were treated by private
physicians or ambulances and then
taken home. There was no attempt to
keep record of such cases. 1t Is
needless TO say that the ambulance
surgeons of this city were overwork-
ed while the large number of people
Of the city were attempting TO take
things easy because OF the intense
y frequent comment was that it is re-
inarkable that the public ambulance
surgeons themselves were not over
come by the heat while busted in their
treatment of cases of heat prostrations.
All day long they worked ceaselessly
TO prevent fatalities and to allay the
intense pains of number Of people
overcome by the heat
c., +. Kay. twenty-six years old, OF
SIT North Twenty-seventh Street. was
overcome while working at the Rich
mond branch of the American Locomo-
tive Works. The ambulance from the
Virginia Hospital was summoned and
Kay was treated and taken home. He
CONTINUED on Last Page.)