LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Las Vegas just closed the books on its second-warmest summer on record — and for the thousands living without shelter in the city, every degree was felt.
David, a unhoused man in his 60s living in Las Vegas, knows that reality better than most.
"The first month I was out here, I was rushed to the hospital. I had a 106 temperature. I was on life support from the heat," David said.
"It's ungodly hot and it's getting hotter," he continued.
Las Vegas is the fourth-fastest warming city in America, according to an analysis by Climate Central. August alone proved that point --with 18 daily warm high and low temperature records broken. On average, the city now sees 60 more summer nights with above-average heat compared to 50 years ago.
"Some nights it don't get down that low, you know, it's 100 degrees at 2 o'clock in the morning. It's outrageous," David said.
Lou Lacey, who leads outreach efforts for HELP of Southern Nevada, said the danger is unrelenting for people living outside.
"When you're homeless and it's 105 plus degrees at night, there's no escape. There's no escape," Lacey said.
HELP of Southern Nevada is one of several organizations canvassing the Las Vegas Valley daily, offering services, shelter and support to unhoused residents. Lacey said the stakes of that work are clear.
"That's the advantage of living in Vegas in the winter, it never really gets too cold, right? But in the summer it is dangerous," Lacey said, though he remains steadfast in his optimism for the cause.
"That's why I get up every day and come and do this is because I believe in my heart we could fix this."
But the solution is a moving target.
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Clark County conducts approximately 1,200 encampment cleanups annually. The county says it takes a collaborative approach to clearing encampments, involving departments including Public Works, Social Services, Code Enforcement and Real Property Management, as well as community partners such as HELP of Southern Nevada and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
When an encampment is cleared, however, people must move — and some say that process can carry unintended consequences.
"We have a lady that had heart medications after having heart surgery. Those got wiped out in a abatement, I guess you call it," said a volunteer with outreach group Henderson Angels.
"It becomes problematic because her insurance company won't cover it again, and she ends up without her medications. That was one of the hardest ones for me to get over," she continued.
Lacey acknowledged that solutions are rarely straightforward.
"Resolving someone's housing issue is not a cookie cutter solution to a very complex problem, right?" Lacey said.
The human toll: Heat contributed to at least 260 deaths in Clark County in 2026. Of those, 74 were listed as homeless, according to coroner's office records.
David said the physical and mental weight of surviving extreme heat is visible on the streets every day.
"When it's 110 degrees out and you're walking around barefooted? That's mental health. I feel for that," David said.
For David, a turning point came on a Monday in August — an open clinic bed and a coordinated ride from outreach workers gave him a path forward.
"Just start to live again, you know, enjoy life," David said.
Because even as heat records continue to fall, the people living outdoors have no days off from survival.
