While the heat wave continues in the USA, tourists are still flocking to Death Valley

DEATH VALLEY, Calif. (AP) — Hundreds of Europeans traveling the American West and adventurers from across the U.S. are still drawn to Death Valley National Park, even as the desolate region, considered one of the hottest places on Earth, is being hit by a dangerous heat wave blamed for the death of a motorcyclist over the weekend.

French, Spanish, English and Swiss tourists left their air-conditioned rental cars and RVs on Monday to snap photos of the barren landscape, so different from the snow-capped mountains and rolling green hills they know from home. American adventurers liked the novelty, even as park officials in California warned visitors to be cautious.

“I was excited that it was going to be so hot,” said Drew Belt, a resident of Tupelo, Mississippi, who planned to stop in Death Valley, the lowest-elevation spot in the U.S., on his way to climb Mount Whitney in California, the highest peak in the lower 48 states. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Kind of like walking on Mars.”

Park ranger Mike Reynolds warned visitors in a statement that “such intense heat can pose a real threat to your health.”

The scorching heat wave that hit much of the United States also led to record daily high temperatures in Oregon, where it is believed to have caused four deaths in the Portland area. More than 146 million people Heat warnings were in effect across the United States on Monday, particularly in the western states.

Many locations across the West and Pacific Northwest set or broke previous heat records over the weekend, and those records are expected to continue into the coming week.

The early heat wave in the US came as global temperatures hit record highs in June for the 13th month in a row According to the European climate service Copernicus, this was the twelfth month in a row in which the earth was 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than in pre-industrial times.

In Oregon’s Multnomah County, home to Portland, the medical examiner’s office is investigating four suspected heat-related deaths recorded Friday, Saturday and Sunday, officials said. Three of the deaths involved county residents ages 64, 75 and 84, county officials said in an email. Heat was also suspected in the death of a 33-year-old man who was admitted to a Portland hospital from outside the county.

Portland broke daily record temperatures on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and will do so again on Monday with a forecast high of 102 F (38.9 C), National Weather Service meteorologist Hannah Chandler-Cooley said. High temperatures are expected in Portland through Tuesday evening.

Temperatures are not expected to be as high as in a similar Heatwave in the Pacific Northwest in 2021which killed an estimated 600 people in Oregon, Washington and Western Canada. However, the duration could be problematic because many homes in the region do not have air conditioning.

Across the desert in Nevada, Las Vegas recorded a record high of 120 F (48.8 C) on Sunday and was forecast on Monday to reach a record high of 46.1 °C (115 °F). The National Weather Service forecast a high of 47.2 °C (117 °F) for Phoenix.

Extreme heat and a prolonged drought in the West have also dried out vegetation that can fuel wildfires.

In California, a forest fire in the mountains of Santa Barbara County had spread to more than 88 square kilometers by Monday evening. More than 1,000 firefighters were deployed, and the areas subject to evacuation orders included the former Neverland Ranch, once owned by the late pop star Michael Jackson. The fire was only 8 percent contained.

A small but smoky blaze dubbed the Royal Fire consumed more than 60 acres of forest west of Lake Tahoe and rained ash on the tourist town of Truckee, California. The fire was not contained as of Monday evening.