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A punishing heat wave threatened the United States' July 4th celebrations, World Cup matches and power grids as near-record temperatures scorched the eastern part of the country on Friday.
Around 160 million Americans were under either a major or an extreme heat warning as the country prepared to mark the 250th anniversary of its independence, according to the National Weather Service.
Celebrations on the National Mall, the lawn stretching from Congress to the Washington Monument, were partially postponed in the early afternoon on Friday because of the heat.
A young woman apparently suffered heat exhaustion and was evacuated by paramedics from the Great American State Fair, held on the Mall. An event staffer said the fair could be forced to close, and organizers shut it down less than 90 minutes later.
The annual Independence Day Parade in Washington, set for Saturday morning, was also canceled due to extreme heat, organizers said.
In New York City, the heat index, the apparent temperature when humidity is factored in, stood at 41°C (105°F) in the mid-afternoon, short of the 46°C forecasters had predicted.
The brutal heat prompted cooling centers to open across the city and public swimming pools to extend their hours.
Across the country, numerous daily temperature records were expected on Friday and Saturday, with some consecutive-day, monthly and all-time records possible, the National Weather Service said.
Hang Dang, a 76-year-old retiree, said extreme temperatures would not keep her from attending July 4th celebrations in Washington.
Dang, who came to the U.S. from Vietnam in 1975 and attended the bicentennial, drove 12 hours from Florida for the anniversary.
By midday, lines to enter the state fair stretched more than 120 meters (400 feet) as temperatures climbed toward a forecast high of 38°C.
Attendees sheltered in the narrow shadows cast by temporary buildings on the fairgrounds before the event was postponed and set to reopen at 5 p.m.
In Miami, Argentina and Cape Verde played in a stadium with a partial roof canopy but no air conditioning, with a forecast heat index of 37°C for the 6 p.m. kickoff.
On Saturday, France and Paraguay are set to meet in Philadelphia, where the heat index could reach 41°C.
FIFA has introduced a mandatory hydration break in each half of every World Cup match due to the heat, though it remains unclear whether the measure will be sufficient for outdoor matches during the heat wave.
Preliminary data showed the daily heat record in the US capital was likely broken after the nearby airport reached 38°C, surpassing the previous July 3 record of 38°C set in 1966.
The intense heat and related air conditioner use strained electricity grids across the country. New York's utility provider, Con Edison, said crews restored power to about 60,000 residents after heat-related outages.
More than 22,000 people were without power around 4:30 p.m. (8:30 p.m. GMT) on Friday across New York City and surrounding suburbs.
PJM, which coordinates grids serving 67 million customers across the East Coast and parts of the Midwest, said data centers were prepared to switch to emergency backup power to relieve strain on the system, among other measures under consideration.
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