Heat wave in North Carolina with high heat indexes and warnings officially ends Thursday

As Central North Carolina bakes under above average summer temperatures, a NC psychiatrist is warning that the dangers go far beyond dehydration and heat exhaustion. The extreme temperatures can also take a toll on mental health.

"I think most of us are familiar with extreme heat causing physical consequences," Dr. Narissa Price said. "So, heat stroke, heat exhaustion, but there are psychological or mental health consequences as well."

According to Dr. Price, those consequences can show up in subtle but serious ways: mood swings, trouble sleeping and difficulty concentrating. People with existing mental health conditions may be especially vulnerable.

"If you have an underlying mental health condition, like a mood disorder, anxiety disorders or schizophrenia... extreme heat can worsen those, and even, unfortunately, suicidal ideation or thoughts about suicide can increase with extreme heat as well," she said.

While people may stay indoors to escape the heat, isolation can bring its own mental health risks.

"It's important to take a check in with ourselves."

Today marks the final day of the heat wave that has been in place since July 25.

Skies will be partly cloudy today with highs in the mid-90s and feels-like temps as high as 105+.

Spotty storms will be possible, especially south of the Triangle.

Tonight will remain humid with temperatures in the low to mid 70s.

Cooler temperatures are on the way!

Full Forecast Here

A Heat Advisory is effective for Wednesday from 10am until 8pm for feels-like temps of 105 to 109.

The heat wave will officially end Thursday with highs in the low 90s. However, storms potential ramps up as well.

A cold front will approach from the north and west, resulting in scattered rain and storms later in the day/evening. Locally heavy rain and a few gusty storms will be possible.

The front will linger Friday before passing through the immediate region later on Friday and into Saturday morning, resulting in showers and thunderstorms into Friday as well as a noticeable temperature drop. Late in the day on Friday now features the potential for flooding as a result of high rain rates that are expected.

Full Forecast here

Duke Energy says overall, the electric grid is performing well with the extreme heat, but there have been sporadic outages in some neighborhoods.

ABC11 News found grid workers out ensuring customers stay online.

Duke Energy Spokesperson Jeff Brooks says the weather has not caused a widespread outage, and self-healing technology, which can reroute power, has helped.

There's also staff working around the clock to keep the system running.

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