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By KELIN DILLON

According to the Mexican Secretariat of Health, 48 individuals died last week due to high temperatures brought on by Mexico’s ongoing third heatwave.

The Secretariat of Health’s Weekly Report for the Epidemiological Surveillance of Extreme Natural Temperatures registered 42 deaths caused by heat stroke and 6 caused by dehydration during the week ending May 21. 

A total of 14 of those deaths occurred in Veracruz, as well as eight in San Luis Potosí and eight in Tabasco, revealed the report.

This marks an increase of 25 heat-related deaths from the week prior.

The number of health issues caused by the heat also reportedly increased from 670 to 956 week-over-week.

The news of rising heat-related deaths comes as Mexico’s third heat wave of the year rages on, causing the National Meteorological Service (SMN) to register a high of 48 degrees Celsius in Sinaloa and a record of 34.4 degrees Celsius in Mexico City.

While the heatwave is expected to persist in the coming days, director of the Secretariat of Comprehensive Risk Management and Civil Protection Guillermo Ayala noted that temperatures are beginning to cool down as the rainy season approaches.

“We estimate that this heat wave will decrease between Wednesday, May 29 and Thursday, May 30; on those days, temperatures could range between 33 and 33.7 degrees Celsius,” said Ayala. “And we are going to have rains similar to those on Saturday and Sunday, which were a little longer, and were accompanied by thunderstorms and hail. The rainy season will be more and more constant and present.”

“The recommendation continues to be that the population not let their guard down. We must continue hydrating and protecting our skin with sunscreen, and our head, with wide-brimmed caps and hats, so that it covers us as much as possible and we are not exposed to solar radiation, which is still very high,” concluded Ayala.