**Viral News Snippet: "Heat Advisory 'Ghost Town' Alert Issued for 7 States – Experts Warn of Mass Power Grid Collapse"**

Viral News Snippet: “Heat Advisory ‘Ghost Town’ Alert Issued for 7 States – Experts Warn of Mass Power Grid Collapse”

Status: FAKE

What’s circulating: Social media posts claim the National Weather Service (NWS) has issued a rare “Ghost Town” heat advisory for seven states (Arizona, Nevada, California, Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Utah), warning that the power grid will collapse due to a “heat hole”—a sudden drop in temperature after extreme highs—causing mass blackouts and requiring residents to evacuate to “cool zones” in nearby states.

What’s real: The NWS has indeed issued excessive heat warnings and advisories for those states this week due to a dangerous heat dome, with temperatures reaching 110–120°F in some areas. However, there is no such thing as a “Ghost Town” advisory. The term “Ghost Town” originated from a satirical post on a parody weather account. Power grid operators in Texas (ERCOT) and California (CAISO) have issued conservation alerts, urging voluntary electricity conservation to avoid blackouts, but no mandatory evacuations have been announced.

Key facts to fact-check:

• ✅ Real: Extreme heat alerts are active in the Southwest and parts of the South through early next week. Wind speeds and humidity are dangerously low, increasing fire risk.
• ❌ Fake: “Ghost Town” advisory is not a real weather category. No official government entity has used that term.
• ❌ Fake: No credible source from the NWS, FEMA, or state emergency management has issued an evacuation order for the entire state or region due to heat alone.
• ⚠️ Misleading: While the power grid is under stress, “mass collapse” is an exaggeration. Rolling blackouts are possible in isolated areas if conservation fails, but this is not a