HOUSTON – We all know Texas heat is nothing to play with, but if you’ve ever noticed how it’s hotter in some Houston neighborhoods than others, it’s not a mirage.
And as the summer heat sets in this week, we’re diving deeper into some of Houston’s hottest zip codes.
MORE: Houston’s summer heat wave has arrived, record-setting temps likely all week!
KPRC 2 meteorologists tell us we’re expected to break heat records this week as well, and some people will be hotter than others because of where they live.
The latest data shows neighborhoods in southwest Houston tend to be hotter than other areas and are considered “High heat stress” areas.
This is all because of the Urban Heat Island Effect, which means urban areas experience higher temperatures due to development, such as buildings and roads that absorb and retain heat.
They also usually lack green spaces, which can lead to various environmental and health impacts.
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In Gulfton, which is one of the hotter neighborhoods, working to create more green space. Our Andy Cerota talked about this issue with Harris County Precinct 4 County Commissioner Leslie Briones a few months ago on how adding more green space is so important for the neighborhood.
In August 2024, Houston hosted the largest single-day heat mapping campaign in U.S. history. 150 community members fanned out collecting data and the results, released in February, found the hottest neighborhoods were on the southwest side.
Learn more about what was found by clicking here.