Motorcyclist dies in California’s Death Valley as record-breaking heat rages across the country

FILE PHOTO: A sign warns drivers of extreme heat in Death Valley National Park in Furnace Creek, California, August 17, 2020. Photo by David Becker/Reuters

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A long-running heat wave that has already broken all previous records in the United States continued Sunday. Parts of the West were parched in dangerous temperatures, leading to the death of a motorcyclist in Death Valley, and the East was also in its sweltering grip.

READ MORE: More records expected to be broken as heat hits 130 million people in the US

An extreme heat warning – the highest warning level from the National Weather Service – was in effect for about 36 million people, or about 10 percent of the population, said NWS meteorologist Bryan Jackson. Dozens of locations in the West and Pacific Northwest met or exceeded previous heat records.

That was definitely the case over the weekend: Many areas of Northern California saw temperatures exceed 110 °F (43.3 °C), with the city of Redding setting the record at 119 °F (48.3 °C). Phoenix set a new daily record for warmest low temperature on Sunday: the temperature never dropped below 92 °F (33.3 °C).

On Sunday, a maximum temperature of 53.3 degrees Celsius was measured in Death Valley National Park in Eastern California. One visitor died from the effects of the heat and another person was hospitalized, authorities said.

The two visitors were part of a group of six motorcyclists who were riding through the Badwater Basin area in scorching hot weather, the park said in a statement.

The identity of the deceased person has not been determined. The other motorcyclist was taken to a Las Vegas hospital for “severe heat illness,” the statement said.

The other four members of the group were treated on site.

“This kind of heat can pose a real health hazard,” said park ranger Mike Reynolds.

READ MORE: Tips for your safety in extreme heat

The high temperatures didn’t faze Chris Kinsel, a visitor. He said it was “like Christmas for me” to be in Death Valley on a record-breaking day. Kinsel said he and his wife usually come to the park in the winter when it’s still warm enough – but this is nothing compared to being in one of the hottest places on Earth in July.

“Death Valley in the summer has always been on my bucket list. I’ve wanted to come here in the summer for most of my life,” said Kinsel, who was visiting Death Valley’s Badwater Basin area from Las Vegas.

Kinsel said he planned to go to the park’s visitor center to have his photo taken next to the digital display of the current temperature.

Across the Nevada desert, Natasha Ivory took four of her eight children to a water park in Mount Charleston outside Las Vegas, where a record high of 48.3 °C (119 °F) was reached on Sunday.

“They’re having a blast,” Ivory told Fox5 Vegas. “I’m getting wet, too. It’s too hot not to.”

Jill Workman Anderson was also at Mount Charleston, taking a short hike with her dog and enjoying the view.

“We can look out and see the desert,” she said. “It was also 30 degrees cooler than northwest Las Vegas, where we live.”

Triple-digit temperatures were common across Oregon, and several records were broken – including in Salem, where temperatures reached 103 degrees Fahrenheit on Sunday, surpassing the 100 degrees Fahrenheit mark set in 1960. On the wetter east coast, temperatures above 100 degrees Fahrenheit were common, though there were no extreme heat warnings for Sunday.

“Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, avoid the sun and check on relatives and neighbors,” says a weather forecast for the Baltimore area. “Small children and pets should never be left unattended in the car under any circumstances.”

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FILE PHOTO: A sign warns drivers of extreme heat in Death Valley National Park in Furnace Creek, California, August 17, 2020. Photo by David Becker/Reuters