LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – With the extreme heat warning in the forecast Wednesday and Thursday, first responders are urging people to stay indoors and stay off remote trails.
If you are absolutely determined to hike, they urge you to do so on an urban trail where help can easily get to you easily if you get in trouble.
The Phoenix Fire Department posted a picture of a firefighter holding up a written out sign: “stop hiking in the heat.” With the extreme heat in Southern Nevada and Arizona, first responders are trying to get the message out to even the most experienced hikers.
“We rescued the hiking guide. He went out by himself,” recounted Steve Smith, Vice Commander of Medical for Red Rock Search and Rescue.
Smith explained why it is much more dangerous to hike right now.
“This is a dry heat. So, as you’re hiking, you’re huffing and puffing, you’re bringing dry air into your lungs. Your lungs need moisture to exchange oxygen so you can actually dehydrate faster because you’re dehydrating like from the inside out,” Smith explained.
Near the Nevada-Arizona border and Hoover Dam, one of the most popular local hiking trails is closed. The parking lot at Goldstrike Canyon is padlocked but that does not stop everyone.
“I’ve heard people get dropped off by somebody and they’re going and doing these hikes and it’s just so dangerous because you’re basically the only one on the trail and if anything happens to you, there’s no cell service,” reported Smith. Once a call for help is made, it can take rescue teams hours to reach some locations. There have been hundreds of heat illness and dehydration-related rescues in the area in recent years and for some it has been too late.
“They did temperature tests down in Goldstrike, and it was 140° in the canyons just from all the radiating heat that’s coming on you. So, your body can’t handle that, and people don’t know that,” Smith revealed.
Earlier this month, a 48-year-old hiker and his dog were rescued by park rangers at Lake Mead after a coordinated, multi-agency search. After learning online about a missing dog, the male hiker took his dog to search for it but the pair had to be rescued themselves from a remote area of the park.
Smith says even going up to Mt. Charleston to hike can be a big problem for some. While it’s about 20° cooler up the mountain, if it’s 110° in the valley and 90° there, the elevation gain on many of the hikes in addition to the heat will make it a challenge.
Several trails are closed for the summer within Lake Mead National Recreation Area and also at Valley of Fire State Park due to the danger. The trail closures are also meant to protect first responders from having to endure the extreme heat in order to rescue someone.
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