NYC Hits 104 Degrees; Breaks Heat Record from 1957

New York City broke a heat record on Friday. A record-high temperature of 104 degrees was measured in Central Park shortly before 2 p.m., easily beating the previous record of 101 for July 22 set 54 years ago.

While the all-time record of 106 wasn’t reached, residents in the Tri-State Area were left sweating it out as the mercury soared.

Temperatures in Newark hit 108, which surpassed an all-time record. The city had previously reached 105 on several occasions. CBS 2 Meteorologist Lonnie Quinn said that with the humidity, it felt like 120 degrees in Newark.

Helena Powell, of Mount Vernon, grabbed a cup of ice on her way to the subway.

“I’ll be burning up down there so I’m getting myself prepared,” she told CBS 2′s Sean Hennessey.

Others that were stuck in the heat did what they could to stay cool.

“Lots of water, trying to stay cool. I have some ice pack in my back to keep me cool,” Erina James said.

New York City has extended hours for public pools until 8 p.m. both Friday and Saturday night. Deputy Mayor Steve Goldsmith also advised New Yorkers to stay cool and conserve.

“Keep your air conditioner up at 78 at least. Keep your blinds closed, make sure your air conditioning is cleaned at the outlet and everything else that can help reduce the power drain on the city — light and temperature settings and the like,” Goldsmith said.

In Queens and Westchester County, Con Edison has reduced power to tens of thousands of customers because of electrical equipment problems. There were also thousands of customers without power in New York City, Long Island, New Jersey and Connecticut.

The utility company also reported around 3:40 p.m. that it hit an all-time, record-high 13,700 megawatt load, saying that number could go even higher.