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A 67-year-old hiker died Tuesday in the Grand Canyon, park officials said Wednesday as forecasters in the region warned of excessive and life-threatening heat.
The hiker, from Alvarado, Texas, was found unresponsive on the South Kaibab Trail below Cedar Ridge around 11:50 a.m., and efforts to resuscitate him failed, the National Park Service said in a statement.
The death is under investigation. The park warns hikers to be very careful because of the summer heat and to avoid hiking from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
“In the summer, temperatures on exposed parts of the trail can exceed 120°F (49°C) in the shade, creating extremely hazardous conditions for hikers,” the park warned in a statement Wednesday.
The death was announced Wednesday as the Southwest and other parts of the country, including in the Grand Canyon, were under heat warnings.
Highs for Phantom Ranch, a lodge at the bottom of the canyon, are forecast to be 110 degrees Thursday and 113 degrees Friday, the National Weather Service said.
The hiker who died, whom park officials did not identify, had been trying to reach the Colorado River to stay at Phantom Ranch. Reportedly, he had turned around at Skeleton Point and was headed back up the trail before he was found unresponsive and authorities were called, the park service said.
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport broke a record high temperature for Wednesday’s date with a reading of 117 degrees, the weather service said,
In Colorado, Denver International Airport hit 100 degrees, tying a record set in 2022. It was the first 100-degree day of the year, the agency said.
More than 7 million people were under excessive heat warnings in the Southwest, including Phoenix, on Wednesday afternoon, according to the weather service’s website.
Red flag warnings‚ which are issued for high heat and dry conditions that can help wildfires spread, covered areas with around 4 million, including Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Oregon, Washington and Idaho.
