A 57-year-old man is the second to have died from heat exposure this summer in California’s Death Valley National Park.
Peter Hayes Robino, of Los Angeles, died not long after he drove his car off a steep embankment on Aug. 1, the National Park Service (NPS) said in a press release on Aug. 12.
Authorities confirmed his death was due to heat exposure, following results from an autopsy.
Robino had earlier taken a mile-long circular hike along the park’s Natural Bridge trail. Others observed him stumbling as he returned.
The route is particularly perilous on hot days, and on the date that Robino died, the temperature reached a high of 119 degrees.
The park service said that Robino responded incoherently to witnesses’ offers of help that day and proceeded to get into his car to leave the park. As he drove off, his car plummeted down a steep 20-foot embankment at the edge of the parking lot.
The car rolled over, causing airbags to activate, park officials said.
Robino was still alive after the crash and managed to exit the vehicle and seek shelter in a shaded area of the parking lot. A bystander then called 911.
Although Robino was still breathing when emergency crews arrived at the scene, he died shortly afterward despite being moved to an air-conditioned ambulance and multiple resuscitation attempts, according to park officials.
“National Park Service (NPS) emergency responders received the 911 call at 3:50 pm and arrived at 4:10. Robino was declared dead at 4:42,” according to the official release.
Death of Motorcyclist
On July 6, a motorcyclist died from heat exposure in the park when temperatures reached 128 degrees that day.
The rider was traveling in a group of half a dozen other motorcyclists through the park and was taken to a Las Vegas hospital to be treated for severe heat exposure. Four others were treated at the park location on the same day and were later released.
In late July, a 42-year-old man from Belgium suffered second-degree burns on his feet on his feet at Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes in the park. The park said that the ground temperature would have been much hotter than the air temperature, which was around 123°F.
Park rangers have advised that summer travelers to the park stay within a 10-minute walk of an air-conditioned vehicle, not hike after 10 a.m., wear a hat and sunscreen, drink plenty of water, and eat salty snacks.
The park is known to be one of the hottest and driest locations in the country.