Passing Parade: Summer forecast: it’s hot and getting hotter

Nelson A. Pryor: Guest Columnist July, 1936, was a barn burner. It was a heat wave, pushing temperatures to 100 degrees in Illinois and 120 degrees as far north as North Dakota, leaving 5,000 people dead.  The heat wave, before air conditioning, pushed the condition in New York City’s Central Park to 106 degrees. Desperate for relief, people slept on roofs and fire escapes and flocked to public pools, which stayed open until midnight. New York City alone recorded 21 drownings as adults