It’s a hotspot in more ways than one. Tourists from all over the world are flocking to Death Valley despite the region’s scorching temperatures — which have resulted in one recorded death. Indeed the infamously arid region, which straddles the border of Nevada and California, attracted hundreds of people from France, Spain, the UK and other far-flung locales, the AP reported.
These pilgrims were reportedly undeterred by scorching conditions in the aptly-named tourist site, which also happens to be the lowest point in North America. Meteorologists predicted last week would surpass Earth’s alleged hottest-ever recorded temperature of 134 degrees Fahrenheit (recorded in Death Valley in July 1913), but it’s yet unclear whether this molten milestone has been eclipsed. For many guests, the potentially record-breaking heat was the main point of visiting this possibly fatal attraction.
“I was excited it was going to be this hot,” Drew Belt, a tourist from Tupelo, Mississippi, who wanted to stop off at Death Valley en route to California’s Mt. Whitney, told the AP. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Kind of like walking on Mars.” In other words, this desolate hellscape’s become too hot to resist for sightseers, who seem to make pilgrimages to Death Valley whenever meteorologists forecast record-breaking temps in the area. Visitors could unfortunately be playing with fire.
Mike Reynolds, Superintendent of Death Valley National Park, warned potential Icaruse.