Heat wave grips Southwest

Associated Press

PHOENIX

As the mercury soared, records were falling.

A severe heat wave ushered in the first-day of summer Monday in the broiling Southwest, where extreme temperatures were blamed for at least five deaths over the weekend.

Towns along the Arizona-California border were getting the brunt of the high temperatures Monday.

In Palm Springs, the thermometer hit 121 degrees in the early afternoon. The temperature in Phoenix climbed past 111 degrees.

A cool off was expected in the coming days.

The National Weather Service reported 17 daily heat records were broken in Southern California on Sunday – because of a high pressure ridge over the Four Corners region of the Southwest.

“People are assuming that it’s going to be a little bit cooler in the morning, and the temperatures are still extremely hot,” National Weather Service meteorologist Bianca Hernandez said

For many people who work outside, however, air conditioning isn’t an option. Here’s a look at people whose jobs require that they endure the most extreme heat:

There’s little shade along the horse trails in South Mountain Park and Reserve near Phoenix. Ponderosa Stables manager Kim Fitzgerald and her wranglers are well-seasoned when it comes to dealing with extreme heat.

Many of their customers, however, aren’t. “It’s a dry heat, and so people from out of state won’t realize how bad it is because they don’t sweat as much,” Fitzgerald said.

When the temperature breaks 100 degrees, the horse rides come to a stop before noon.

Cassie Rogge Dodds at Reid Park Zoo in Tucson, Ariz., spends most of her days outdoors tending to a herd of six elephants. She says many of them are from South Africa and accustomed to extreme heat but still need to be protected.

Dodds called the elephants into a pool Monday morning, when temperatures had already reached 100 degrees

Eric Mayweather was on the streets of downtown Phoenix on Monday selling umbrella hats and cold drinks to other brave souls who were out and about.