What Living Through the Hottest July Ever Looked Like Across the U.S.
This July was the hottest month ever recorded in United States history. Last month’s average temperature was 3.3°F (1.8°C) higher than the 20th century average for the contiguous United States, according to new data…
PolicyDrift
PolicyDrift
PolicyDrift
This July was the hottest month ever recorded in United States history. Last month’s average temperature was 3.3°F (1.8°C) higher than the 20th century average for the contiguous United.
This July was the hottest month ever recorded in United States history. Last month’s average temperature was 3.3°F (1.8°C) higher than the 20th century average for the contiguous United States, according to new data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. This was the warmest July—and warmest month—in the 132-year record, 0.1–0.2°F warmer than the previous records seenduring the Dust Bowl in July 1936 and in July 2012.
The reality of this extreme heat was experienced through three separate heat dome events, with several states, including Idaho, Utah, and Montana setting all time temperature records on July 12. Salt Lake City, UT, saw temperatures reach 109°F, while in Montana, Billings saw temperatures reach 111°F and Miles City 115°F. Wyoming recorded its warmest July and warmest month on record.
Extreme heat wasn’t the only notable climate event Americans were dealing with. Wildfires in eastern Oregon burned through 140,000 acres, forcing thousands of residents to evacuate. Federal fire resources were stretched thin as other fires burned in Colorado, Washington, and beyond.
The smoke from the blazes, coupled with fires in neighboring Canada, worsened air quality for millions across the country. By mid-July, Chicago was reporting the worst air quality in the world.
Though the month ranked as the third driest July of the 132-year record, with about 48.5% of the contiguous U.S. in drought, mid-month flash floods in Central Texas along the Guadalupe River brought over 28 inches of rainfall. The floods killed two people in the same area which saw catastrophic flooding over last year’s July 4th weekend.
The month showed just how varied the impacts of climate change can be. Residents in Texas and Oregon saw their homes damaged or destroyed by flooding or fire, while those in the Midwest found themselves digging out N95 masks to walk their pets or commute to work while facing some of the worst particulate air quality the region has seen in over 25 years. Many others found creative ways to take respite from the heat—seeking shade in tree-lined streets or cooling off in fire hydrants and lakes alike. Here’s what it was like to live through the hottest month on record.
A fire helicopter drops water during sunset on vegetation area as crews battle wildfire named as 'Little Fire' in Sunol, Alameda County, Calif. on July 21, 2026. —Tayfun Coskun—Anadolu/Getty ImagesAmid Colorado's historic drought and record low snowpack a home with a brown lawn sits next to a home with a green lawn in Denver, Colo., on July 24, 2026. —Michael Ciaglo—The Washington Post/Getty ImagesPeople cool off along the lakefront as temperatures topped 90 degrees in Chicago, Ill., on June 29, 2026. An extreme heat warning for the city was extended through July 3. —Scott Olson—Getty ImagesA plumes of smoke from the Camp Fire hangs in the air on Moose Lake as multiple wildfires burning in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness prompted its closure and evacuation in Ely, Minn., on July 14, 2026. —Anthony Soufflé—The Minnesota Star Tribune/Getty ImagesDebris is piled on Mill Dam road after heavy rain caused flooding in Comfort, Texas, on July 16, 2026. —Aaron E. Martinez—The Austin American-Statesman/Getty ImagesPeople clean out a flooded building on in Kerrville, Texas, on July 16, 2026, —San Antonio Express-News/Hearst Newspapers/Getty ImagesPeople jump on water-soaked pavement around an open fire hydrant at sunset during a heat wave in the Hamilton Heights neighborhood of the Manhattan borough of New York City on July 2, 2026. —Charly Triballeau—AFP/Getty ImagesA home is covered in fire retardant dropped by firefighters during the Old Trails Fire in Spokane, Wash., on Aug. 4, 2026—the aftermath of July's Spokane fire. —Josh Edelson—AFP/Getty ImagesChildren play near breaking waves on West End Pier on Lake Pontchartrain as Tropical Storm Bertha approaches the Louisiana Coast in New Orleans on July 22, 2026. —Gerald Herbert—APSmoke from wildfires in Canada shrouds the view north to midtown Manhattan, seen from the 86th-floor observation deck of the Empire State Building before sunset on July 15, 2026. —Gary Hershorn—Getty ImagesBill Dozier, left, and Sharon Dozier sit on their flooded front porch as they talk with their grandson, Skylor Dozier, who lives in a trailer on their property along North Camp Street in Uvalde on July 16, 2026. —Sam Owens—San Antonio Express-News/Getty ImagesFirefighters burn off vegetation while trying to stop a wildfire called the Bench Fire from spreading in Warm Springs, Ore., on July 25, 2026. —Noah Berger—APPeople watch a worker creating sand berms to protect beachfront homes from Pacific Ocean high surf in Long Beach, Calif., on July 30, 2026. —Mario Tama—Getty ImagesA person assess flood damage near the banks of the Guadalupe River in Kerrville, Texas, on July 17, 2026. —Brandon Bell—Getty ImagesA firefighter cools off with a bottle of water after responding to a fire during a heat wave in Georgetown, Mass., on July 2, 2026. —Erin Clark—The Boston Globe/Getty ImagesPeople watch a brush fire near Centre Pointe Parkway in Santa Clarita on July 15, 2026. —Hans Gutknecht—MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News/Getty ImagesAn attendee of the Great American State Fair sits in the shade during high temperatures on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on July 4, 2026. —Pete Kiehart—Bloomberg/Getty ImagesSmoke spreads across the sky as the Little Fire grows in size near Pleasanton, Calif., on July 21, 2026. —Brontë Wittpenn—San Francisco Chronicle/Getty Images
