Assessing and Promoting Awareness of Heat Stress through Wet Bulb Globe Temperature

This project has two goals. The first is to develop an estimated wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) climatology, while the second is to determine if there is a relationship between WBGT and morbidity (emergency department visits and inpatient hospitalizations) and mortality (fatalities) in Louisiana. The first goal will be accomplished by estimating WBGT from ERA-5 Land for the southeastern U.S. from 1991–2020, emphasizing athlete and worker safety thresholds. The second goal will utilize ERA-5 Land derived WBGT, heat index, and air temperature alongside data provided by the Louisiana Department of Health for 2010–2021. Statistical analyses of the relationship between all three heat variables and the health data includes descriptive statistics, correlation, and regression analysis at the state, climate division, and parish level. Peer-reviewed manuscripts will be developed for both studies.