Southwest US states bake, wildfire threatens Arizona towns

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By KEN RITTER

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Southwest U.S. continued to bake Saturday, and weather forecasters kept warnings in effect for excessive heat in Arizona, Nevada and desert areas, at least through the weekend.

High temperature marks didn’t fall Saturday, but Phoenix reached a sweltering high of 115 degrees (46 C) for the day and Las Vegas hit 111 degrees (44 C). Both were 3 degrees shy of records for the date, forecasters said.

Predicted highs on Sunday of 116 degrees (46.6 C) in Phoenix and 113 degrees (45 C) in Las Vegas were expected to fall short of high marks for June 20, the National Weather Service said.

But Phoenix did set a record Saturday for consecutive 115-degree (46 C) days, meteorologist Isaac Smith said, and Sunday could extend the record to six days.



FILE - In this Tuesday, June 15, 2021, file photo, a pedestrian holds a bottle of cold water at a Salvation Army hydration station during a heatwave as temperatures hit 115-degrees in Phoenix. The Southwest U.S. continued to bake Saturday, June 19, and weather forecasters kept warnings in effect for excessive heat in Arizona, Nevada and desert areas, at least through the weekend. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)


Read more: https://apnews.com/article/ca-state-wire-arizona-fires-wildfires-environment-and-nature-8dcb89fd5ded4c632155c3478d8ba3ee

[Aristus]

1. It's not a heat wave.

It's a routine "tourist temperature"...

[Rural_Progressive]

16. This wouldn't be happening if people were cleaning up the climate

What's wrong with you lazy nobs, get those rakes out and turn to.

[keithsw]

2. My son lives in Phoenix

Area. Said it was 117 the other day when he called me

[Traildogbob]

3. Will of God???

Could they be doing some bullshit to piss him off? Some say!!!!! Peeeeple are calling me and saying. “Sir, God is mad at all the lying and hate”. The devil loves this heat. It’s a dry heat, and a dry hate.

[not fooled]

4. Ironic

AZ--a state filled with climate and science deniers--resource exploiters and fossil fuel defenders--getting the brunt of this heat. And it's only going to get worse, year after year, for the rest of our lives. Swathes of the region will be only conditionally habitable within a decade or two--residents will have to plan carefully for any activity that involves going outdoors. Not a good way to live for ever-increasing areas of the state, for 4+ months of every year.

[Random Boomer]

6. And that assumes the power doesn't go out.

Energy blackouts in summer, taking out the air-conditioning, would result in fatalities.

[not fooled]

7. This is my last summer here

About six years ago, I moved to SW AZ because of work. That job has now ended. I've been staying on largely out of inertia, but just reached a decision to leave and get the hassle of moving over with, next spring, after I've finished getting the house ready for sale (including a lot of landscaping, hence the need to stay through next winter).

In the relatively short time I've been here, the winters have warmed, noticeably--there used to be mild frost and intermittent low 30s, but every year it's less cold. This past winter, I think it hit the high 30s, once. The flip side is that the extreme heat starts sooner, ends later, and reaches new highs for longer and longer periods. The handwriting is on the wall. And, we did have a power outage last week. Lasted about 7 hours, largely during the early morning...but you are right, people would start dying because of outages.

And yet, more and more people want to move here...

[AZLD4Candidate]

10. There are six new housing developments being built within a five mile radius of my parents

in Vail, in SE Tucson area.

Again, the bar is so low for realtors and developers to prove their "100 year water requirement" than it's almost just a paperwork formality.

This, along with the 1922 Colorado Protocol, needs to be changed ASAP. I have adopted this as my platform plank.

Added to that, Yuma has a a trickle of the Colorado River near it now. . .and the Tohono o'Odham Nation's water rights have been violated repeatedly by Arizona. They are LAST on the list.

[AZLD4Candidate]

8. My home here in Arizona is solar powered during the day, as is my parents' home

Our electric bills is just "fees" of about $35 a month. . .we actually have credits of over $500 because we only use the grid at night when solar panels aren't effective.

[Warpy]

5. Same thing happened last year

Triple digits week after week when low 90s should be the norm at a mile up. Big high pressure ridge came in and just sat there, causing increased wildfires, trapping the smoke, and cutting off the monsoon flow that might have aided firefighters. It also suppressed eastern Pacific hurricane formation while the Atlantic produced a bumper crop of storms.

Once was an annoying fluke. Twice in two years looks like the beginning of a bad habit.

I hope not. It's brutal out here.

[Elessar Zappa]

14. Yeah,

here in Silver City we received virtually no rain last summer. Normally July and August are peak monsoon season. I can’t bear to think of another year without them. I weep for the forest.

[Warpy]

15. not much forest to speak of here in the valley

but I know what you mean it's not just dry, it's crunchy.

I thought when I got old my bones would crave warmth. Didn't happen. Damn it.

[StarryNite]

11. Water is being hauled by volunteers to the Sitgreaves National Forest

for the wildlife. Arizona Game and Fish Dept has some volunteers hauling water but there are many other citizens who are also hauling for the elk, deer, wild horses, all creatures big and small. Fires breaking out all over the state.

[AZ8theist]

12. Deny water to those waiting on line to vote....

If Repukes were smart, they would move election day to somewhere in June or July.

That way, NOBODY would be able to vote and they would have the feudal dystopia they wet dream for.....

HOLY FUCK it's hot here in AZ....

[MissB]

13. It's going to be unseasonably warm here

But for us that just means a spike to 100, then back down. It’s still wet enough here during the fall, winter and spring that things down dry out much.

Dh and I are fortunate to have a ton of tall trees here. Lots of first but some maple, cedar and oak. Lots of shade so the house tends to not bake, but it also precludes us from having solar.

We still have plenty of water here too.

We’ve toyed with moving over the years but I don’t think we will move. Too many long term favorables about the location.