In July 1995, Chicago faced an unprecedented heat wave that reached temperatures of 106°F (126°F heat index), claiming over 700 lives in just one week. Heat Wave delves beyond meteorology to explore why this disaster was so devastating.

The book conducts a "social autopsy," investigating how social isolation of seniors, neglected neighborhoods, and strained public services deepened the crisis. Based on interviews, archival research, and fieldwork, it maps the city’s vulnerabilities.

Readers will discover:

• Why some communities suffered far higher mortality rates
• How infrastructure failures and institutional breakdown amplified the disaster
• What the 1995 heat wave reveals about urban resilience and policy

Heat Wave remains a timely study of how social and political structures shape urban disaster response.

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