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Sweltering streets: Hundreds of homeless die in extreme heat

Shawna Wright smiles in an undated family photo taken by her late father. Wright was a 62-year-old homeless woman who died in a hot alley in Salt Lake City on July 4, 2021, amid record heat in the Utah capital. Cities around the U.S. and the world are being challenged to keep people who live outside from dying in the streets as the ranks of homeless swell and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. Wright's family may have gone unnoticed if her family had not written a frank obituary blaming the system for failing to better protect homeless people living outside from the extreme heat. (D. Kent Wright/Tricia Wright via AP)

A waitress takes a break during a heat wave in Marseille, southern France, Thursday, June 16, 2022. Hot weather is expected to last for several days across the country. (AP Photo/Daniel Cole)

A woman sleeps under an umbrella on a breakwater in front of the Mediterranean Sea in Barcelona, Spain, Thursday, June 16, 2022. Spain's weather service says a mass of hot air from north Africa is triggering the country's first major heat wave of the year with temperatures expected to rise to 43 degrees Celsius (109.4 degrees Fahrenheit) in certain areas. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Homeless people sleep in the shade of an overbridge on a hot day in New Delhi, Friday, May 20, 2022. The Indian capital and surrounding areas are facing extreme heat wave conditions. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

People cool off in the shade of a boat during a heat wave in Marseille, southern France, Thursday, June 16, 2022. Hot weather is expected to last for several days across the country. (AP Photo/Daniel Cole)

A homeless man watches as workers clear a homeless encampment in a storm drain near a casino in Las Vegas on Thursday, May 26, 2022. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A homeless man cools off in fountain along the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas on Thursday, May 26, 2022. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A volunteer at the Justa Center picks up trash at the outdoor eating area Friday, May 20, 2022, in Phoenix. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

A homeless person sits in the median at an intersection Wednesday, April 27, 2022, in Phoenix. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

A homeless person pushes their belongings Wednesday, April 27, 2022, in Phoenix. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

"Cueball", front left, dines with other homeless persons at the Justa Center Friday, May 20, 2022, in Phoenix. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Jim Baker, who oversees that dining room for the St. Vincent de Paul charity, sits in the dining room after dinner Wednesday, April 27, 2022, in Phoenix. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Jim Baker, left, who oversees that dining room for the St. Vincent de Paul charity, talks with a homeless person about getting services Wednesday, April 27, 2022, in Phoenix. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

A homeless man works a sign as he sits next a monument to homeless people who have died Wednesday, April 27, 2022, in Phoenix. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

"Cueball" pets his dog Lindsay at their tent on the edge of a homeless encampment Friday, May 20, 2022, in Phoenix. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

"Cueball" wheels himself into an air-conditioned building at the Justa Center where homeless eat lunch and receive other services Friday, May 20, 2022, in Phoenix. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Mac Mais, 34, who has been homeless on and off since he was a teen, sits inside a converted vacant building turned into a 200-bed shelter for homeless people recently opened shown Friday, May 20, 2022, in Phoenix. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

A homeless encampment grows in size just west of downtown Friday, May 20, 2022, in Phoenix. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

"Cueball", left, talks about his dog Lindsay with neighbor Terry Reed, right, at their tents Friday, May 20, 2022, in Phoenix. Hundreds of homeless people die in the streets each year from the heat, in cities around the U.S. and the world. The ranks of homeless have swelled after the pandemic and temperatures fueled by climate change soar. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Sweltering streets: Hundreds of homeless die in extreme heat