In the desert of Phoenix (USA), not even the cacti can bear the heat. “They’re in their 40s and 50s and now clearly under water stress,” says ecophysiologist Kevin Hultine. And if even these plants, designed to survive in the desert, can’t hold out, “there’s no doubt that humans are going to have a bad time with these weather conditions,” warns Hultine.

The capital of Arizona is one of the hardest hit by high temperatures. With more than a million and a half inhabitants, it has broken a hot record that surpasses that of 50 years ago: 21 days with an average of 44 degrees. And that’s not the worst, because the lows don’t drop below 34 degrees, something that directly affects health.

Arizona is just one of 16 states where, the National Weather Service warns, heat can promote disease, something they seem not to take into account at a Las Vegas airport, where they left passengers locked in a plane for more than three hours without air conditioning. “It was complete chaos!” recalls a passenger. So much so that several of them ended up fainting.

Difficult situation also in Death Valley, California. There, neither the danger signs of extreme heat They are able to stop the incessant arrival of visitors who, just by taking this photo, endanger their own lives.