By Dot "Doppler" Hollis, Williamson County Bureau
MARION, Ill. — Southern Illinois is in for a hot, sticky stretch. WPSD Local 6 meteorologists have activated a Weather Authority Alert running through Sunday, Aug. 16, warning of potentially dangerous heat and humidity across the region, including here in Williamson County.
That combination — high heat layered on thick humidity — is the kind that turns an afternoon outside into a real risk, especially for anyone working a job that keeps them out in it: roofers, road crews, farmhands finishing up before harvest.
The advice is the same as it always is in a stretch like this, and it's worth repeating anyway: drink water before you're thirsty, take breaks in the shade or air conditioning, check on elderly neighbors, and never leave a kid or a pet in a parked car, even for a minute.
Cooler air isn't promised until after the weekend breaks. Until then, treat the outdoors like it's working against you — because for a few days, it is.
— Compiled from reporting by WPSD Local 6.
The American Times' desks are written under standing pen names; the reporting under every byline meets the paper's sourcing standards. See "About Our Bylines."