Three months after Amy Dishion gave birth to a baby girl, her husband, Evan, died of heat stroke. He was 32 and out hiking with a group of friends on a 109-degree Arizona day. It was hot, but they were young and in good shape, so they thought they could handle it.
“Heat just kills people. His death destroyed my life,” said Amy. Their daughter, Chloe, is now two. “He has missed her life.”
Evan, a medical resident, was trying to make the most of a rare day off. But the group got lost, ran out of water, and had no cellphone service to call 911.
Now Amy, a member of Moms Clean Air Force since becoming a mom in 2022, shares her story to warn people about the dangers of extreme heat: heat stroke, heat exhaustion, and death. She wants people to enjoy nature but insists they do the work to educate themselves and “be as prepared as possible.”
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Data suggests 2024 is on track to be the hottest year since recording began, with April and June already earning this dubious status. Arizona repeatedly breaks heat records: In 2023, Phoenix sweltered through 55 days of 110°F or higher. Earlier this month the city hit 116 degrees on August 3, breaking the previous record set in 2020 by two degrees. Heat waves and periods of extreme heat are increasing in all ways–frequency, duration, intensity—as a direct result of climate change.
“It doesn’t matter how smart a person is or how fit or young or old you are. The elements will always win,” Amy says, noting her husband had just run a marathon and had no underlying health conditions. “The climate is getting hotter and drier, and our bodies are not designed for it.”
The new parents, both from Oregon, had been living in Phoenix for three years at the time of Evan’s death. As a new father and medical resident who worked long hours, he welcomed an unusual free day that allowed for a miles-long hike with friends. “I knew it was hot, but people who are not from Arizona don’t quite have the understanding of the heat that native Arizonans do. None of the people on the hike were native to Arizona. They underestimated the heat.”
It’s not just newcomers underestimating Arizona’s temperatures and suffering heat stroke and more. Heat-related deaths have increased locally. In Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, there were 645 heat deaths in 2023, up from 339 in 2021. In the mid-2010s, only 61 to 182 heat deaths per year were recorded.
The group began hiking early—around 6 AM. Amy has since learned from others with Evan that day that they stopped briefly around 10. They were still far from the mountain they planned to summit, and one person suggested they turn around because of the heat. But no one else wanted to, so they kept going.
Evan texted Amy shortly after that conversation to check in, noting it was hot. Then his phone went into silent mode as the hikers entered an area with no service. Amy knows now that one member of the group developed heat cramps in his legs around this time and stayed behind under a tree waiting while the rest completed the mountain summit. When the group finished, they attempted to seek help for their friend, but says Amy, “they were already affected by the heat. If Evan was in his right mind he would say, ‘We are turning around right now.’” Instead, they got lost, one of the other guys started to have hallucinations, and none of them had packed a GPS tracking device. “I didn’t even know they existed at the time,” says Amy.
Evan, according to one of the hikers, knew the situation was dire. “All of a sudden, he passed out. They put him under a tree,” Amy says. “I don’t think he passed out. I think he died then of heat stroke.” She’s since learned “that’s usually how it happens.”
Once the remaining members of the group finally located cell service and helicopters arrived, the paramedics fumed at them, telling the group, “You guys really shouldn’t have been out here in this heat. Your friend is dead,” Amy says.
Back at home waiting to hear from Evan, Amy had a “really bad feeling” from around 1 PM on. “I remember sitting with my little baby just looking at her. I was trying not to panic.” Amy knew something was wrong and tried to distract herself by reading Chloe a book. At 4:30 PM a call came in from a local hospital confirming her young, healthy husband passed away. “I instantly went into shock,” Amy remembers.
Evan was the only member of the group to die. “The others on that hike were close to death themselves. If the helicopters had taken longer, there would have been more deaths. He happened to die first.”
Amy now lives in Oregon again—with Evan’s relatives—and is working to spread the word about precautions to take in extreme heat. “Looking back, this was totally preventable. With more water and a GPS tracker, they could have gotten help way sooner.”
She of course wishes Evan and his friends had chosen to go to a movie or do anything else. But some people like hiking, even in 109 degrees. “It’s not my job to sit in judgment. If I’m going to raise awareness, I have to understand that people enjoy these things. I want people to be prepared, not underestimate nature and not overestimate themselves.”
Learn more about Moms’ work on extreme weather.
Tell FEMA: Protect Families From Extreme Heat and Wildfire Smoke