The southern U.S. may have triple-digit temperatures, but experts believe injuries and deaths caused by the heat have been drastically reduced.
The reason? The prevalence of air conditioning.
According to U.S. Census figures from 2005, about 91 percent, or 36 million, of Southern households now have central air conditioning units.
That number has grown considerably since the late 1970s, when about a quarter of Southerners didn't have air conditioners.
The most recent statistics from the Tennessee Valley Authority, the nation's largest public utility providing power to seven states, show only 2.5 percent of its customers don't have air conditioning.