Jimmy He
A 71-year-old man died in Death Valley National Park on Tuesday afternoon amid temperatures of 121 degrees, the National Park Service (NPS) said in a press release.
The man collapsed outside of a restroom at the Golden Canyon trailhead. Helicopters were unable to respond due to high temperatures. While a cause of death has not been determined yet, park rangers suspected that heat was a factor.
Authorities later identified the man as Steve Curry of Los Angeles.
Earlier in the day, Curry was interviewed by a reporter from the Los Angeles Times at the popular tourist destination Zabriskie Point. He had hiked about two miles there from Golden Canyon and later hiked back to the trailhead, where he left his car.
So far this week, Death Valley saw a high of 126 degrees on Monday. The highs in July usually range from 116 to 118 degrees and the area sees an average of 147 days a year with temperatures rising above 100 degrees.
(MORE: Here Are Earth's Hottest Temperatures Measured, According To Reliable Records)
“The valley is surrounded by mountains on all four sides, which also heat up in the desert sun. On a typical day, when the valley floor heats up, instead of mixing with cooler air from above, it mixes with still quite hot air just above it. In this way, heat can become trapped in the valley,” writes weather.com senior meteorologist Jonathan Erdman.
This is the second death in Death Valley this month. On July 3, another man was found dead in his vehicle. The NPS said that extreme heat appears to have caused his death.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
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