LOS ANGELES (AP) — A heat wave blanketing the U.S. Southwest is toppling temperature records, raising wildfire danger and sending residents to pools and beaches for cool relief.
The National Weather Service says the mercury in Utah will remain in triple digits Thursday, a day after Salt Lake City's airport reached a record 105 degrees.
In the Sierra Nevada, fire danger warnings are posted from Sequoia to Yosemite, while flood warnings due to snowmelt are posted in northern Mono County in California and southern Lyon County in Nevada.
Excessive heat warnings are in place in Arizona, where temperatures in Phoenix could hit 117.
The heat building into the weekend results from high pressure over the desert.
Spiking temperatures will be accompanied by more moisture moving up from Mexico that could add humidity to the heat wave.