Jim Ryan, ABC News correspondent Interview

Jim Ryan talks with Mendte in the Morning to talk about the heat wave that is hitting the north east during the first official week of summer 2025.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Let's talk about the second biggest story of the day,
the heat wave that's not only hitting New York, just
starting today and it's gonna last several days with record heat.
It's across the country. For more on that, let's talk
to Jim Ryan, ABC News correspondent in Dallas. Good morning, Jim.

Speaker 2 (00:18):
Hey Larry, how are you do. It's worse even in
other parts of the guy named Philadelphia. I think they're
going to hit one hundred for the first time in
like twelve years. So yeah, it's it's bad. It's really
bad in that whole northeastern quadrant. You want to escape
from it. Drive two thousand miles west to Montana where
they had snow over the weekend. That sounds like a

(00:39):
nice relief.

Speaker 1 (00:40):
That is incredible. That's an unbelievable So talk about the
area that we're talking about. You mentioned Philadelphia and New York.
How big of an area.

Speaker 2 (00:50):
It's huge. It's it's almost half of the population of
the country. Something like one hundred and fifty million people
are involved here from the Great Lakes region to the
Upper Midwest and then to your part of the country
in the northeast. And yeah, it'll be bad right through Thursdays.
I understand it. Blame it all on the heat Dome,
this gigantic high pressure area that parked itself over the

(01:10):
Great Lakes region and now is sort of creeping a
little bit to the east, but within that area I
think gets in it's high pressure, so it's pushing everything out,
including cooler weather, including clouds, moisture, and it's just turning
hot and miserable. They're baking around the Great Lakes today.

Speaker 1 (01:28):
And every time something like this is going to happen,
people like you and meteorologists and TV and politicians, they
get out in front of it and they warn the public.
And it seems like every single time, we've had a
couple of talkbacks as a matter of fact that said,
you know, it's just going to be hot. I can
deal with that. And every time there are deaths, sure,

(01:49):
and there are probably and there probably will be deaths
this time because people didn't take the heat the warning.

Speaker 2 (01:55):
Unfortunately, You're right, and I mean, the heat claims more
lives than the cold does year and people are getting
dehydrated sometimes without even realizing it. I was interested to
see that some medications, including some antidepressants, will take away
your thirst response so you're not even thirsty. You're outside,
how I feel pretty good. I don't need to drink water.
You should be drinking water. Yeah, those same medications can

(02:19):
inhibit your ability. They're sweat right, It keeps you clothes
nice and fresh, I guess. But if you can't sweat,
then your body's not cooling itself down. It's the self regulator,
so be careful about that. Check your medications, talk to
your doctor the pharmacist to see what the heat relationship
might be to the medications that you're taking.

Speaker 1 (02:37):
Larry, we were talking all morning about and Jim, I'm
sure you think this is a good idea. We were
talking all morning about the most vulnerable in our society.
And everybody has a neighbor that's elderly. Everybody has a
neighbor that may have some medical problems. This is the time,
isn't it to be a good neighbor and just go
introduce yourself.

Speaker 2 (02:56):
Sure, introduce yourself to check on those folks. Let them
know that you know you're you're thinking about him that
have any issues to come see you regardless, Go and
see them anyway, bang on the door. Get in touch
with those older relatives who may live apart from you
and live in that part of the country that's seeing
the heat. But yeah, you're right, Larry's this is the
time to communicate and keep those bridges built.

Speaker 1 (03:19):
Now when you're in Dallas and you live in Dallas,
how hot does it get there?

Speaker 2 (03:23):
Oh? It gets miserably hot, but not right now, coming
Natalie tomorrow. We've got some light rain showers ninety three Wednesday,
ninety one, Thursday, ninety one, Friday. We don't hit one
hundred until Sunday.

Speaker 1 (03:36):
Where are you going, Jim House, Well, that's cool. It's
really nice here. It's nice and cool. Ninety three Yeah, yeah, Well,
thanks so much, Jim Ryan, ABC News correspondent in Dallas.
Enjoy those cool temperatures.

Speaker 2 (03:52):
I will, Thanks, Larry. I appreciate it.