Summers in Phoenix are punishing. And this summer was scorching hot. July and August were the hottest and driest on record. And while much of the country is beginning to cool off as autumn approaches, we can expect more triple digits into next week.
According to the National Weather Service, we experienced a record-smashing 53 days where temperatures were 110 degrees or higher. The previous mark of 33 days was set in 2011.
And sometimes it exceeded 115 degrees. There were 14 of those miserable days. Despite the less than ideal weather, many of us still enjoy the challenge of hiking up a mountain on a really toasty day.
"I can tell you that in one day, we did have five mountain rescues," said Phoenix Fire Department Captain Todd Keller. He's talking about what happened on Sept. 6.