Oppressive Heat Wave Drags on Along the East Coast (PHOTOS)

The Maryland Department of Health confirmed the state's first heat-related death of the year. A man in his 30s died in Baltimore, where a code red heat alert was in effect Monday and Tuesday.

The heat broke records throughout the Northeast. Providence, Rhode Island, reached 100 degrees Fahrenheit for the first time in nine years, according to the National Weather Service in Boston. Portland, Maine, had its hottest low temperature — 78 degrees — since 1911.

As the week continues, the heat will shift west, into the Desert Southwest, pushing as far north as Canada's Northwest Territories. Daily record highs are likely to be set throughout the West late this week and may extend into the weekend.

Even the Pacific Northwest and northern Rockies will experience the heat. Spokane, Washington, and Boise, Idaho, could see triple-digit heat, and Salt Lake City could have multiple days of highs above 100. Ninety-degree weather is possible into Montana, and also in parts of western Oregon, including Portland.