BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) – As Alabama endures scorching summer temperatures, mental health professionals are warning the public about a sometimes-overlooked danger: the connection between extreme heat and violence.
“There’s a clear, documented link between heat waves and spikes in violence,” said Dr. Josh Klapow, a clinical psychologist. “The more heat waves there are, the more violence we’re going to see, the more crimes we’re going to see. That’s what the science shows very definitively.”
Klapow said it’s not just the temperature that matters, but how much it deviates from what’s considered normal in a given area. Research suggests that when temperatures rise roughly 15 to 20 degrees Celsius above average, the likelihood of violent incidents increases…