Residents, communities preparing for heat wave that will envelop Midwest, Northeast next week

Things are about to heat up in much of the U.S. with dangerously hot temperatures in the Midwest and Northeast next week, prompting health officials to urge people to make plans now to stay safe.

The heat wave follows an earlier-than-usual one in the Southwest last week, which saw triple-digit temperatures in cities like Phoenix, where there were 645 heat-related deaths last year.

Last year the U.S. had the most heat waves — abnormally hot weather lasting more than two days — since 1936.