Mideast Hit With 165F Heat, 'Highest Ever Recorded'

Scorching heat has put temperatures as high as 165 degrees in the Middle East, as a "heat dome" passes its way through the region.

"That was one of the most incredible temperature observations I have ever seen — and it is one of the most extreme readings ever in the world," AccuWeather meteorologist Anthony Saglia told The Telegraph of the 165-degree heat-index reading in the western Iran city of Bandar Mahshahr.

Saglia said the heat index — the "feels-like temperature" — in the city was among the highest ever recorded.

The index was recorded by weather experts, who also predicted that the country could be enduring some of the hottest urban temperatures ever, the Telegraph reports.

The dew point, which measures the moisture in the air, reached 90 degrees, Popular Science reports. The figure is very unusual and very high, indicating that a lot of moisture is in the air.

However, the temperature figure was just a few degrees lower than the heat index ever recorded: 178F in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, on July 8, 2003, according to the Telegraph.

The National Weather Service says that with a heat index over 125 degrees, "heat stroke is very likely."

In Iraq and other neighboring countries, the government has urged residents to drink lots of water and stay out of the sun amid fears they could be struck down by what weather officials called a "heat dome."

The dome is a high-pressure ridge that is passing over the region. It has exacerbated electricity and water supplies, making the heat even more unbearable.

Last month in Pakistan, a heat wave killed more than 1,200 people, Al Jazeera reports.

The temperatures in the Middle East are expected to remain high for the next few days, according to The Weather Channel, leading some countries to order mandatory days off to keep people from venturing into the heat.


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