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By Melina Walling and Isabella O鈥橫alley

The Associated Press

CHICAGO 鈥� Natural disasters can be dramatic 鈥� barreling hurricanes, building-toppling tornadoes 鈥� but heat聽is more deadly.

Chicago learned that the hard way in 1995.

That July, a weeklong heat wave that hit 106 degrees Fahrenheit killed more than 700 people.聽Most of the deaths occurred in poor and majority Black neighborhoods, where many elderly or isolated people suffered without proper ventilation or air conditioning. Power outages caused by an overwhelmed grid made it all worse.

Initially slow to react, Chicago has since developed emergency heat response plans that include a massive push to alert the public and then connect the most vulnerable people to the help they may need. Other cities like Los Angeles, Miami and Phoenix now have 鈥渃hief heat officers鈥� to coordinate planning and response for dangerous heat. Around the world, cities and countries have adopted similar measures.

But experts warn those steps might not be enough聽in a world that is seeing 聽and ongoing inequality.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 know a single city that is truly prepared for聽the worst-case scenario聽that some climate scientists fear,鈥� said Eric Klinenberg, a New York University professor of social sciences who wrote a book about the Chicago heat wave.

Heat preparedness has generally improved over the years as forecasting has become more accurate, and as meteorologists, journalists and government officials have focused on spreading the word of . Chicago, for example, has expanded its emergency text and email notification system and identified its most vulnerable residents for outreach.

But what works in one city might not be as effective in another. That鈥檚 because each has its own unique architecture, transportation, layout and inequities, said Bharat Venkat, a UCLA associate professor who directs the university鈥檚 Heat Lab that aims to tackle what he calls 鈥渢hermal inequality.鈥�

Venkat thinks cities should address inequality by investing in labor rights, sustainable development and more. That may sound expensive 鈥� who pays, for instance, when a city tries to improve conditions for workers in blistering food trucks? 鈥� but Venkat thinks doing nothing will ultimately cost more.

鈥淭he status quo is actually deeply expensive,鈥� he said. “We just don鈥檛 do the math.鈥�

France launched a heat watch warning system after an extended heat wave in 2003 was estimated to have caused 15,000 deaths 鈥� many of them older people in city apartments and homes without air conditioning. The system includes public announcements urging people to hydrate. Just last month, against heat-wave deaths聽that it said was inspired by France鈥檚 experience.

In Ahmedabad, India, a powerful heat wave in 2010 with temperatures over 118 degrees Fahrenheit led to more than 1,300 deaths. City officials now have a heat action plan to improve awareness among the local population and health care staff. Another simple initiative: Painting roofs white to reflect the blazing sun.

Ladd Keith, a University of Arizona assistant professor, cited Baltimore鈥檚 Code Red Extreme Heat as an example of a well-designed alert system. The alerts go out when the forecast calls for a heat index of 105 Fahrenheit or higher and sets in motion things like more social services in communities most vulnerable to heat risks.

He lauded the heat officers in cities like Los Angeles, Miami and Phoenix, but said there are 鈥渟till over 19,000 cities and towns without them.鈥�

Inkyu Han, a Temple University environmental health scientist, noted that cities are still struggling to get aids such as cooling centers and subsidized air conditioning into poorer neighborhoods. More can be done, he said, via simple and sustainable solutions such as improving tree canopy.

鈥淣otably, low-income neighborhoods and communities of color in Philadelphia often lack street trees and green spaces,鈥� Han said.

In Providence, Rhode Island, the Atlantic Ocean typically moderates temperatures, but the region can still get heat waves. Kate Moretti, an emergency room physician, said the city鈥檚 hospitals see more patients when the heat strikes 鈥� with increases in illnesses that may not be obviously related to heat, like heart attacks, kidney failure and mental health problems.

鈥淲e definitely notice that it puts a strain on the system,鈥� Moretti said. Older people,聽people who work outdoors, people with disabilities and people who are homeless make up a big share of those admissions, she said.

Miami 鈥� considered ground zero for the climate change threat due to its vulnerability to rising sea levels, flooding, hurricanes and extreme heat 鈥� appointed its heat officer two years ago to develop strategies to keep people safe from heat.

Robin Bachin, a University of Miami associate professor of history and founding director of the Office of Civic and Community Engagement, noted that the federal government has laws to protect people in cold climates from having their heat shut off in dangerous conditions, but doesn鈥檛 have something similar for cooling.

鈥淔or people in apartments that are not publicly subsidized, there is no requirement for landlords to provide air conditioning,鈥� Bachin said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 incredibly dangerous to particularly our local low-income population, let alone people who are unhoused or are outdoor workers.鈥�

The United States has so far gotten lucky with the duration of most heat waves, Klinenberg said, but added that electrical grids vulnerable to high demand in some regions, along with persistent social inequities, could spell serious trouble in the coming decades.

That鈥檚 partly because the underlying social problems that make heat events so deadly are only getting worse, Klinenberg said. Chicago鈥檚 1995 deaths were clustered not only in poor and segregated neighborhoods, but also specifically within what he calls 鈥渄epleted鈥� neighborhoods 鈥� places where it鈥檚 harder for people to gather and where social connections have been worn thin. Empty lots, abandoned restaurants and poorly maintained parks mean that people are less likely to check on each other.

Noboru Nakamura, a University of Chicago professor of atmospheric sciences who specializes in extreme weather events, said he thinks Chicago has made plenty of smart changes by implementing heat emergency plans, routine wellness checks and cooling centers.

But he too cited inequality as a difficult challenge.

鈥淎 systemic problem of a resource inequity is something that you can鈥檛 really get rid of overnight 鈥� and we still have the same issue that we had (in 1995) today,鈥� Nakamura said. 鈥淪o that aspect still is a big, big, big, big unsolved problem.鈥�

Editor鈥檚 note: O’Malley reported from Philadelphia.