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Officials attributed the spike in fatalities to a record-breaking June 2025 heat wave that killed 19 people. All but three who died last year were Black or Latino; many died at home, without air conditioning.
At least 21 New Yorkers died from heat stress last year, the city’s Health Department announced Monday in its annual report on heat-related mortalities—up from just three such deaths the summer prior, and an annual average of seven over the last decade.
The city attributed the spike to a record-breaking June 2025 heat wave that lasted four days and killed 19 people. All but three of those who died last year were Black or Latino, which city officials linked to systemic racism and other historical inequities. Many died at home, without air conditioning.
In addition to heat-stress fatalities—deaths caused directly by heat, including those from heat exhaustion and hyperthermia—the city estimates that some 500 New Yorkers on average die each year from chronic health conditions exacerbated by hot weather, which is becoming more common, and more intense, thanks to climate change.
“Most heat-related deaths occur at home, making access to safe and affordable indoor cooling one of the most effective ways to protect New Yorkers,” NYC Chief Climate Officer Louise Yeung said in a statement announcing the new data.
While the vast majority of New York City households—around 90 percent—have access to air conditioning, energy costs keep some from turning them on. Approximately 493,000 rental households reported having AC but not using it because of utility prices, the city’s 2023 housing and vacancy survey found.
While low-income New Yorkers can apply for funds to purchase an air conditioner under the federal Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP), the cooling assistance portion of the program doesn’t extend to people’s monthly energy bills.
Even so, demand for HEAP greatly exceeds what’s available for the program, which opens to applicants each spring and stays open until funds run out. That happened on June 5 this year, city officials said, “earlier than any previous year.”
The city recently added three new locations—in Brownsville, East Harlem, and Tremont—to its network of public cooling centers, where residents can access AC during heat waves. New Yorkers can find information on these and other city hot weather resources here.
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