A man died while hiking at the Grand Canyon National Park over the weekend.
The 69-year-old man, identified as Scott Sims of Austin, Texas, became ill during a hike Saturday evening. The man was initially semi-conscious before becoming unresponsive.
"This event was rare in the sense that heat is thought to be a contributing factor to this fatality," said Joelle Baird with the park. "On average, we do see between one to two heat-related fatalities per year."
Baird said that the park has an entire team of preventive search and rescue rangers, ready to interact with visitors and making sure they have safe hiking plans. Assistance from rangers can be delayed due to simultaneous incidents requiring help.
Latest on Arizona heat
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Scores of schools across the U.S. are carpeted in asphalt with no shade. The situation has become acute enough that kids are losing classroom time to closures related to heat. -
Phoenix continues to set heat records this summer, but other communities have also seen an increase in the impacts of extreme heat. Sara Meerow, an associate professor in the School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning at ASU, says says there's been dramatic increase in the level of interest across all kinds of communities worldwide in taking this issue on. -
A 3-year-old girl died after being left in a vehicle in Buckeye on Sunday. She is the third child known to have died in a hot car in Arizona this summer. -
As we get further into September, residents should still brace for the heat. Weather forecasts from the National Weather Service show temperatures remaining high. -
With triple digit temperatures lingering into September, officials are tasked with making sure high school football players can compete safely.
