How Hot Was It in Phoenix? Here Are Five Reminders in Case You Forgot

If you live in Phoenix, you've probably been getting snide remarks from those folks back east you trolled in January when they were stuck in a blizzard.

My favorite exchange:

Facebook Friend:  How can anybody stand that heat?

Me:  If it's so bad, why do so many people move here?

FBF:  A lot of people voted for Trump; that doesn't make them smart.

Zing.

Buzzfeed also took a shot at us, pointing out that Phoenix was melting.

But, hey, some of the smartest journalists in the world, Investigative Reporters and Editors, Inc., scheduled its annual convention here this week. More than 1,600 attended. Somebody's database is getting fried.

Here are five stories to remind you about this week in hell.

Even the Airplanes Didn't Want to Go Outside

American Airlines canceled more than 40 flights Tuesday because some smaller planes won't operate when the temperature is higher than 118 degrees. It reached 119. You can de-ice a plane, but apparently you can't de-heat it.


We Never Expected to Be Featured in Food & Wine for Baking a Frozen Pizza

In honor of the IRE conference here this week, reporter Antonia Noori Farzan and Social Media Editor Dillon Rosenblatt did a little investigative work of their own, discovering that a frozen pizza will bake in a parking lot, which the temperature is 113 and above. Food & Wine liked our stunt  so much that it rewrote our story for its website.



But, Please Don't Eat Anything That You Cook on the Sidewalk

Our pizza stunt also prompted our food editor, Felicia Campbell, to remind folks that cooking items, particularly eggs, using only the Phoenix sun can be hazardous to your health. "If you try to eat your sun-cooked creations (please, please don't!) you are gambling with a serious case of food poisoning," she wrote.  .



More Than 300 of You Provided Tips on How to Cope (No One Said 'Move to San Diego')

Farzan is facing her first summer in Phoenix. She asked for some survival tips. Hundreds of you replied, with mostly helpful suggestions: drink lots of water, carry an umbrella if you must go out, have potholders in the car to handle the steering wheel ... well, most of you know the drill.


Sister Helen Prejean Was Moved to Tweet Our Story About Heat at Tent City

Many readers were surprised to discover not only that Tent City, the infamous outdoor jail created by former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, is still open, with about half of the prisoners still there as it is gradually phased out, but that some 200 prisoners were staying outdoors when the temps were in the teens. Sister Helen Prejean, author of Dead Man Walking, retweeted our story to her 38,000 followers.