Man found dead in his car in Death Valley National Park, an apparent heat victim

A man was found dead in his car from an apparent heat-related illness during scorching temperatures in Death Valley National Park, according to authorities.

A National Park Service maintenance worker noticed a car about 30 yards off the road from North Highway at 10:01 a.m., according to a park service news release. Park rangers and officials from the Inyo County Sheriff’s Office and the Inyo County Coroner’s Office responded to the incident. The man was pronounced dead at the scene Monday.

The car’s tire tracks ran along the shoulder of the road and rocky berm before veering away from the paved road, authorities said. The car had two flat tires but hadn’t crashed. An investigation concluded that heat-related illness apparently resulted in the driver running off the road.

The previous day’s high temperature in the park was 126 degrees, and the overnight low was 98 degrees. The car’s air conditioning wasn’t working and the driver’s window was down, indicating that there wasn’t any air conditioning at that time, authorities said.

This isn’t the first time someone has died in Death Valley during scorching temperatures.

Last year, a Huntington Beach man died at the park after he ran out of gas and tried walking for help during a heat wave, according to officials.