US weather: Police urge criminals to ‘hold off until Monday’ as deadly heatwave grips east coast

A US police force has jokingly urged criminals to “hold off until Monday” as the east coast is gripped by a deadly heatwave, which has already claimed the lives of at least six people.

A message posted on Braintree Police Department’s Facebook page read: “It is straight up hot as soccer balls out there.

“Conducting criminal activity, in this extreme heat is next level henchmen status, and also very dangerous,” the department’s Facebook post read. “Stay home, blast the AC, binge Stranger Things season 3, play with the face app, practice karate in your basement We will all meet again on Monday when it's cooler. Sincerely, The PoPo.”

Authorities across the country are urging residents to stay cool and hydrated after the excessive heat caused four deaths in Maryland, one death in Arkansas and another death in Arizona, CBS News reported on Saturday night.

Summer festivals and outdoor events were cancelled on Sunday, including the New York City triathlon and the OZY fest, featuring musician John Legend and US women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe. The 1969 moon landing commemoration in Times Square was also cancelled on Saturday.

Meanwhile in Boston, public pools were opened to the public at no cost as temperatures were set to reach 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius), the Associated Press reported.

The National Weather Service described the heat wave as “oppressive and dangerous” and warned states from the Carolinas to Maine would feel temperatures of 100 to 110 degrees Fahrenheit (38 to 43 degrees Celsius).

Chicago also saw many outdoor event cancellations, including a run in Grant Park. While the city saw a record 700 deaths during a three-day heatwave in 1995, none were reported from the region as of Sunday.

Baltimore reached a heat index of 122 degrees Fahrenheit (50 degrees Celsius) by early Saturday afternoon. CBS News reported record heat in “New York City's JFK Airport, Long Island's MacArthur Airport, Atlantic City, Blacksburg, Virginia and Millinocket in northern Maine.”

A cold front brought some relief to the central US, the National Weather Service reported, as temperatures cooled off in the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes.

The heat wave was expected to lift across many parts of the country by Monday and Tuesday.