NPR Research Indicates North Carolina Heat-Related Deaths Significantly Underreported
New research conducted by NPR in partnership with Boston University suggests that the actual number of heat-related deaths in North Carolina is substantially higher than official figures reported by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). While CDC data indicates an average of approximately 19 heat-related deaths annually in North Carolina, NPR's statistical model estimates this figure to be around 330 deaths per year, nearly 18 times greater. This discrepancy arises because the CDC primarily records heat deaths only when heat is explicitly mentioned on death certificates by doctors, coroners, or medical examiners. The NPR model, however, incorporates maximum daily temperature readings averaged weekly to provide a more comprehensive estimate of heat-related mortality. Similar underreporting trends were also estimated for other Southeastern states, including South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee.
