Hotter temperatures worsen health inequalities in Detroit

Detroit Aerial: An aerial view of Detroit in summer. ROBERT THOMPSON/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
Detroit Aerial: An aerial view of Detroit in summer. ROBERT THOMPSON/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

LANSING

Big buildings, concrete and roads paint Detroit, just as they do other cities across the country, and the city’s temperature also tends to be hotter than in nearby communities.

Cities are prone to the heat island effect, a phenomenon in which urban areas experience more heat than rural or even nearby suburban areas due to the concentration of infrastructure.

And although summer is still six m…