Cities across the globe are conducting heat-response drills and tabletop exercises to identify and address vulnerabilities in their emergency management systems. These rehearsals simulate extreme heat scenarios, allowing municipalities to test evacuation protocols, cooling center operations, and communication networks before actual deadly heat events occur.
The exercises reveal recurring gaps. Many cities lack adequate cooling centers, insufficient cooling capacity for vulnerable populations, and fragmented coordination between public health agencies, emergency management, and social services. Some drills expose failures in alerting systems that fail to reach elderly residents or unhoused populations most at risk during heat waves.
Heat now kills more Americans annually than hurricanes, floods, and tornadoes combined, according to the National Weather Service. Urban areas face compounded risk from heat island effects, where pavement and buildings absorb and radiate heat, raising temperatures 5 to 7 degrees Fahrenheit above surrounding areas. Low-income neighborhoods with fewer trees and more asphalt experience the sharpest temperature spikes.
Cities including Phoenix, Los Angeles, and Miami have implemented or expanded their drills. Phoenix's exercises test resource allocation across its expanding population during sustained temperatures exceeding 120 degrees Fahrenheit. Other municipalities practice messaging strategies to convince residents to seek shelter, recognizing that public awareness campaigns often fail during crises.
Effectiveness remains uncertain. Drills identify problems but don't guarantee cities will fund solutions. Budget constraints frequently prevent implementation of recommended improvements like tree-planting programs, cool roofs, or expanded cooling center networks. Some cities complete exercises then shelve findings without action.
Climate projections intensify the stakes. The 2024 heat season demonstrated sustained dangerous conditions in multiple regions simultaneously, straining mutual aid agreements between jurisdictions. Future scenarios include simultaneous heat waves across regions, overwhelming any single city's capacity to shelter displaced residents.
Experts argue these rehearsals represent necessary first steps.