July keeps sizzling as Phoenix hits another 110-degree day and wildfires spread in California

FILE – Boys are silhouetted against the sky at sunset as they run along a ridge at Papago Park, April 1, 2022, in Phoenix. / AP

Phoenix sizzled through its 31st consecutive day of at least 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 Celsius) and other parts of the country grappled Sunday with record temperatures after a week that saw significant portions of the U.S. population subject to extreme heat.

The National Weather Service said Phoenix climbed to a high of 111 F (43.8 Celsius) before the day was through.

July has been so steamy thus far that scientists calculate it will be the hottest month ever recorded and likely the warmest human civilization has seen. The World Meteorological Organization and the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service on Thursday proclaimed July beyond record-smashing.

The historic heat began blasting the lower Southwest U.S. in late June, stretching…