A Southern California outdoor enthusiast died Tuesday after collapsing after an hour-long hike in Death Valley National Park, the world’s hottest spot.
Steve Curry, 71, died of what authorities believe were heat-related causes, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday. He died hours after talking to a Times reporter about a summer hike when he took a break for some rare shade under a metal interpretive sign.
“Why would I do that?” When asked why he hiked in such extreme conditions. “why not?”
Hours later, Curry collapsed outside a restroom at Golden Canyon. A park visitor called 911 from a cell phone and rangers tried to save him but were unable to do so, the newspaper reported.
“He went to do something he wanted to do,” said his wife, Rima Evans Curry. “He wanted to go to Death Valley. He wanted to hike.”
The report said that last year’s fatal crash of the Marine Osprey was due to mechanical failure
The famous national park that runs along part of central California’s border with Nevada is known as the hottest place on Earth and has recorded high temperatures during record hot summers.
Temperatures reached 128 degrees Fahrenheit in the aptly named Furnace Creek in Death Valley on Sunday, the National Weather Service said.
On Sunday, July 16, 2023, visitors to the Badwater Basin in Death Valley National Park, California are warned of hazardous conditions caused by extreme heat.
The hottest temperature ever recorded on Earth was 134 F at the same location in July 1913, according to Randy Severny of the World Meteorological Organization, the body recognized as the world record holder.
Curry was an avid hiker who joined a rock climbing group and took training courses in the wilderness.
By the time he finished his hike, the thermometer at the Furnace Creek Visitor Center registered 121 degrees.
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Evans Curry said her husband, who worked for the Los Angeles Unified School District and as an electrician before retiring a decade ago, was outdoors whenever he got a chance.
“He was always happiest when he could sleep under the stars.” “It was his pleasure.”
Curry is the second hiker to die in the park this month.
Source by [Fox News]
