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Rebecca Marshall from the Red Cross Cascades Region to share some of the ways to stay safe in heat waves.

Utilities recommend conserving energy during the hottest hours of the day, in part to help lessen strain on the state’s power grid.

Heat waves have killed hundreds of Californians and cost billions of dollars in the past decade, according to a new report from the state insurance department.

The Multnomah County Medical Examiner’s Office reported Monday that it’s looking into four possible heat-related deaths between Friday and Sunday. Another suspected heat death has been reported in Coos Bay.

Friday saw record temperatures in several Oregon cities, including Medford, according to the National Weather Service.

The declaration helps the state move resources and funding to hard-hit communities.

The abnormally high temperatures coming later this week, part of a multiyear warming trend in Oregon, are prompting public health concerns in a state where many homes lack air conditioning.

As Independence Day looms, so too does a heat wave that's expected throughout Southern Oregon and Northern California. The combination of strong winds, low humidity and firework use is increasing the threat of wildfires.

Tim Palmer's latest book is Seek Higher Ground: The Natural Solution to Our Urgent Flooding Crisis.

A weekend spring storm that drenched the San Francisco Bay area and closed Northern California mountain highways also set a single-day snowfall record for the season on Sunday in the Sierra Nevada.

California has entered spring with an above-average mountain snowpack and major reservoirs in good shape for a second consecutive year, staving off immediate water supply concerns but not allaying drought worries in a warming world.

The approach of April marks a key time of the year. It’s when mountain snow usually peaks across Oregon — offering a hint at the severity of the coming wildfire season and about conditions for farmers who rely on irrigation.