200 Treated for Heat at Concert as West Bakes

Authorities say 200 people were treated for heat problems yesterday as temperatures soared at an outdoor concert in Las Vegas. None of the problems were life-threatening, but about 30 people at the Van Warped Tour at Silverton Casino were hospitalized. The National Weather Service reported temperatures in the area of 115, part of a heat wave affecting several Western states. California's Death Valley, typically the hottest place on the planet, is expected to hit 128 today.

Phoenix, meanwhile, reached 116 yesterday, but that was 2 degrees short of the expected high in part because a light layer of smoke from wildfires in neighboring New Mexico shielded the blazing sun. Temperatures are also expected to soar across Utah and into Wyoming and Idaho, with triple-digit heat forecast for the Boise area. Cities in Washington state that are better known for cool, rainy weather should break the 90s next week. The heat is the result of a high-pressure system brought on by a shift in the jet stream, the high-altitude air current that dictates weather patterns. The jet stream has been more erratic in the past few years. (More Las Vegas stories.)