How hot does it get in Florida in summer?

The humidity makes it feel hotter: the heat index is what the temperature feels like to the body when the humidity is added in, and standing in direct sun can raise it by up to 15 degrees.

The rainy season, when showers and thunderstorms come almost every day, runs from about May 15 to October 15 in Southwest Florida and May 25 to October 10 in West Central Florida, and it peaks from July through early September. The weather service's rule for lightning: when thunder roars, go indoors, and stay there until 30 minutes after the last thunder, in a closed building or a hard-topped metal car.

The weather service office in Melbourne issues a Heat Advisory when the heat index is expected to reach 108 to 112 degrees, and an Extreme Heat Warning when it is expected to reach 113 or more. Never leave a child, a disabled person or a pet in a parked car, even in winter. Heat stroke, with a temperature of 103 or more, hot, red, dry or damp skin, a fast, strong pulse or confusion, is an emergency: call 911, move the person somewhere cooler, and give them nothing to drink. Heat exhaustion, with heavy sweating, cold, pale, clammy skin and a fast, weak pulse, calls for a cool place, loosened clothes and sips of water, and medical help if it lasts more than an hour.

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