Death Valley Visitor Loses Flip-Flops, Gains Third-Degree Burns

There’s a reason they don’t call it Comfortable Valley. A European man who ended up barefoot in the sands of Death Valley learned a hard lesson about things being aptly named as he suffered third degree burns on his soles.

The 42-year-old Belgian lost his flip-flops while taking a walk in Death Valley National Park’s Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes on July 20. It’s not entirely clear how he lost his shoes, but park rangers said they had “communication challenges” with the man. After losing the footwear, the victim’s family was able to get other park visitors to help carry him to the parking lot where help was called.

As Park rangers said in a press release, the man suffered “full-thickness burns,” also known as third-degree burns on his feet.

Death Valley is among the hottest and driest places on Earth during the summer, getting only two inches of rain per year. In July, the average temperature hits 116 degrees Fahrenheit (47 degrees Celsius), but in recent years the valley has endured new record highs of up to 130 degrees F (54 degrees C). On July 20 the temperatures were even more extreme, hitting 123 degrees F (50 degrees C). The ground would have been even hotter than the air.

The conditions get so hot that even emergency helicopters can’t safely land as the heat can reduce rotor lift. As a result, the victim was taken by ambulance to an area with higher elevation that was a relatively cool 109 degrees Fahrenheit (43 degrees Celsius), where a helicopter was able to pick him up to transport him to a Las Vegas hospital.