The summer heat has been relentless, and for some Maricopa residents, it has been deadly.

Maricopa saw five heat-related deaths so far this summer, the highest number since the Pinal County Medical Examiner’s Office began investigating such deaths in 2020.

PCMEO confirmed yesterday that 56-year-old Derrick Fox, 75-year-old Gary Granneman and 58-year-old Vincent Castillo each died from a combination of environmental heat exposure and health issues July 27-28.

Two of the men were found inside their homes with functional air conditioning units that were shut off, said Division Manager André Davis.

“The home was equipped with a functional climate control air conditioning system; however, the unit was powered off, and the ambient temperature inside the home was 107 degrees,” Davis said of one decedent.

In another home, the “air conditioning units in the manufactured home were functional but powered off at the time of the scene investigation,” he said.

Another man was found dead outside his home.

Two other Maricopa residents succumbed to the heat earlier this summer while inside their homes. Garry Folta, 75, died June 20 and Vernitta Alexander, 84, died June 23.

It’s unfortunately not an uncommon occurrence. About 63% of heat-related deaths investigated by PCMEO last year occurred indoors, according to an annual report.

“Of the 19 deaths that occurred indoors, the medical examiner investigator’s scene investigation revealed that climate control systems were either non-functional or inadequate in 11 of [the] cases,” the report read. “Climate control systems were found to be functional but set to ‘off’ (despite the high ambient outdoor temperature) in 8 cases.”

PCMEO did not specify why the units were turned off.

The Arizona Heat Preparedness Network lists only one official cooling center in the Maricopa area: Thunderbird Fire District, 12360 N. Ralston Road. It is open daily from noon to 5:30 p.m.

Additional cooling centers listed by Maricopa Senior Living include Maricopa Library and Cultural Center, 18160 N. Maya Angelou Drive, and La Frontera of Arizona, 21476 N. John Wayne Parkway, Suite C 101.

Davis said the department confirmed investigating 33 heat-related deaths in Pinal County so far this year. That’s nearly 14% higher than in the same time period last year.