Baltimore enters Code Red heat season after 14 days, 8 deaths

Baltimore’s hottest stretch already has a toll attached to it. City officials said the 2025 heat season brought 14 Code Red Extreme Heat days and 8 heat-related deaths, a reminder that the first long hot spells can turn lethal for older adults, young children, people with chronic illness, and residents without reliable cooling.

The 2026 Code Red Extreme Heat season runs from May 15 through September 15, and the Baltimore City Health Department is leading the city’s multiagency response. Officials said the season is treated as a major public-health concern because extreme heat does not just spike temperatures for a few hours. Its effects are cumulative, raising the risk of cardiovascular disease, respiratory illness and stroke after prolonged exposure.

That risk lands hardest in places where cooling is fragile or expensive. In Baltimore’s older rowhomes and dense neighborhoods, a broken window unit, a weak electrical system or the choice not to run the air conditioner can quickly become a health issue. The city says the people most exposed include older adults, infants and children, pregnant people, residents with conditions such as heart disease and asthma, and people working or exercising outside.

Baltimore residents can check whether a Code Red alert is in effect by calling 311. The city says the alert is declared by the health commissioner during periods of extreme heat, with a decision made before 6 a.m. when possible. The Mayor’s Office of Homeless Services also has a Code Red Extreme Heat Alert Plan in effect for the same May 15 to September 15 window, reflecting how heat touches people on the street as well as people in homes that trap heat through the afternoon and into the night.

State officials are also trying to track the problem more closely. The Maryland Department of Health launched a Weather-Related Illness Data Dashboard that replaced document-style reports and now updates weekly during heat season and cold season. The dashboard covers emergency department visits, EMS calls and weather-related deaths, giving local health departments and partner agencies a faster read on where people are getting sick and where resources need to go.

In Baltimore, the next Code Red day is more than a weather advisory. It is a measure of how many residents can get through a dangerous stretch of summer without missing work, paying more to stay cool, or waiting too long for help when the heat starts to win.