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The warmest weather of the year is just around the corner, and that's raising concerns about Utahns' plans in the backcountry.
KSL 5 Meteorologist Grant Weyman says the heat is on as a summer-like high pressure moves in for the next five days. He says for the early part of next week, the mercury should climb to near 90 degrees along the Wasatch Front and the first 100 degree day of the year is in sight for Dixie.
While the weather may be warming up, the water right now is extremely chilly. "It's so cold, it takes your breath away," said Brian McInerney, a hydrologist with the National Weather Service.
McInerney says it's because rivers, streams and even irrigation ditches are filled with runoff from the snowpack. He said, "They just don't realize how dangerous they are, how cold they are, and because we live in a very mountainous area, the water is moving really fast, really swift, and people fall in and they can't get out." He says people die every year because of this.
Salt Lake County rescuers are gearing up for their busiest time of year, which is coming up in just a few weeks.
Experts say it only takes a few minutes to start feeling the effects of hypothermia.
McInerney warns people need to watch their children closely and says cold water can even be found in irrigation ditches.
E-mail: aadams@ksl.com
