Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, August 15, 1995                   TAG: 9508150058
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: A1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: SHANNON D. HARRINGTON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

VALLEY HOLDS ITS HEAT

The Roanoke Valley reached a record-high 100 degrees, the highest temperature anywhere in Virginia, according to the National Weather Service in Blacksburg.

Monday's heat index hit dangerous levels as most of the state was placed under a heat advisory - which occurs when the heat index reaches 105, said Jan Jackson of the weather service.

The heat index, which reached 108 at 6 p.m. in Roanoke, is calculated by combining the effects of temperature and humidity.

The heat advisory has been extended, Jackson said, and no relief can be expected until Thursday or later.

A lack of wind in the valley may be the cause. "We are just sitting in a real still air mass," Jackson said.

Few heat-related problems were reported in hospitals Monday.

The rest of the week may depend on the course of Hurricane Felix, which approached Bermuda late Monday.

The effects of the hurricane may help keep temperatures high through Wednesday, Jackson said.

On the outer edges of hurricanes, an artificial high pressure is created, which would maintain the heat, he said.

But after Wednesday, "a lot depends on what Felix does," Jackson said.

Temperatures also reached record levels Monday in Ohio, South Carolina and Georgia.

The last time Roanoke reached 100 degrees was Aug. 17 and 18, 1988, with temperatures of 102 and 100, respectively, according to the weather service.

Monday was a record day for those trying to beat the heat, too.

Appalachian Power Co.'s all-time summer peak of power usage was broken during the hour ending at 4 p.m., the company reported.

The 5,593,000 kilowatts used during that hour Monday was 143,000 higher than the previous record set in August 1993.

While this is the second time this summer the heat has reached dangerous levels, the Virginia State Climatology Office at the University of Virginia said statistics do not show this summer is significantly hotter than normal.

"Several sites [in Virginia] in mid- to late-July had a stretch of days with 90 degrees or more" without very much relief, said Peter Schwartzman of the climatology office. The average and mean temperatures for the summer, however, have not been much above average.