Excessive Heat — Western Pima County, Arizona
July 14, 2023 · NOAA Storm Events record
Event narrative (NOAA)
Very hot temperatures of 5 to 12 degrees above normal caused the Major Heat Risk category to be reached across western Pima County July 14-29. Record highs at Ajo included 118 degrees on July 25; 117 on July 21 and 22; 116 on July 18 and 19; 115 on July 14, 24 and 29; and 114 on the 15th. Record highs at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument were 114 degrees on July 20 and 23; and 112 on July 18, 19, 24 and 25. The Pima County Medical Examiner determined that heat was the primary cause of death for two individuals found in the desert at Organ Pipe Cactus NM on July 15 and 18 and another at Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge July 29. Heat was determined to be a contributing factor for one individual found in a driveway in Ajo on July 28. A complicating factor in the fatality was alcohol a
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Source: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database. Deaths and injuries are those NOAA classifies as direct. Damage is the reporting office's estimate at the time and is not inflation-adjusted. This is a catalogue record, not a forecast.