According to a National Park Service news release, the 42-year-old Belgian tourist was taking a short walk Saturday in the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes in 123-degree heat when he either broke or lost his flip-flops, putting his feet into direct contact with the desert ground. The result: third-degree burns.
“The skin was melted off his foot,” said Death Valley National Park Service Ranger Gia Ponce. “The ground can be much hotter — 170, 180 [degrees]. Sometimes up into the 200 range.”
Unable to get out on his own and in extreme pain, the man and his family recruited other park visitors to help; together, the group carried him to the sand dunes parking lot, where park rangers assessed his injuries.
Though they wanted a helicopter to fly him out, helicopters can’t generate enough lift to fly in the heat-thinned air over the hottest parts of Death Valley, officials said. So park rangers summoned an ambulance that took him to higher ground, where it was a cooler 109 degrees and he could then be flown out.
I feel like if you go to Death Valley, in July, when we’re having record-breaking temps all over the world, and you wear flip flops…look, I’m not saying anyone deserves to lose a foot just because they’re making stupid choices, but maybe like, a toe. Because man, that is wildly stupid.
Yeah, this is akin to wearing a bikini to Antarctica.
"some folks will never lose a toe; then again some folks’ll. Like Cletus the slackjawed yokel. "
Aye! What’s goin’ on on this side!?
Yeah even if he had the flip flop he’d still be leaving with burns when the flip flop flips and flops some sand between the shoe and his foot.
I’ll say it. This dumbass deserves to lose his feet. Hell, he earned it.
Literally burned it