Welcome to the news hour.

Tens of millions of Americans are baking in a dangerous early summer heat wave.

Dozens of cities from the Midwest to New England are expected to reach record highs as the heat index hits triple digits. The powerful

heat dome is forecast to keep temperatures well above normal across much of

the country through the weekend. In the meantime, wildfires are raging across the west, fueled by soaring

temperatures and dry conditions. In New Mexico, two massive blazes forced

thousands of evacuations and killed at least one person.

And a major fire north of Los Angeles remained less than 40 percent contained.

Across the globe, authorities say hundreds died in Saudi Arabia where temperatures reached 125 degrees at the

Grand Mosque and Mecca this week. More than a million people traveled to the country this week

for the Haj, the annual Islamic pilgrimage. In Greece, a stifling heat wave

was responsible for the deaths of multiple tourists, including a 55-year-old man from Floral Park, New York.

For more on the impact and implications of all this,

we're joined by journalist Jeff Gadell.

He's author of the book,

The Heat Will Kill You First, Life and Death

on a Sc scorched planet.

Welcome back to the program.

It's good to have you here.

Good to be back.

Some 75 million Americans are under an excessive heat

warning or heat advisory today.

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