As Arizona swelters in a punishing 19-day heatwave, one motorist has claimed that the extreme temperatures melted her car light.
Sierra Ramos posted a TikTok on Monday showing her tail light had apparently liquefied in the summer heat.
“Guys, the light is melting,” she says in the viral clip which has racked up more than 260,000 views in 24 hours.
“Crazy it was 131 degrees outside,” Ms Ramos added in a caption.
Phoenix was expected to set a record-breaking stretch of 19 days when the temperatures topped 110F (43C) on Tuesday. Gauges reached a scorching 114F (45.5C) on Monday.
Across the planet, historic heatwaves stoked by the climate crisis have been setting new temperature records in recent weeks.
Commenters on Ms Ramos’ TikTok expressed sympathy – and some scepticism – about her claims.
TikTok user Sierra Ramos claimed a tail light had melted in Arizona’s relentless heatwave— (TikTok / Sierraramos825)
“The sun is definitely angry this year,” wrote one. “It’s ridiculous here in (California), it went from being cool and cloudy to just burning up.”
Another commented: “The sun just melting the city objects away.”
Others appeared unconvinced that the sun alone could have dissolved the solid plastic.
When a Facebook post went viral in 2021 claiming tires, bins and traffic lights had melted during a summer heatwave, fact-checkers from USA Today found the damage had actually been caused by fires or exposure to other weather conditions.
Tail lights are made from polycarbonate plastic, which typically melts at temperatures of 288C to 316C (550F to 600F), meaning it was highly unlikely that Ms Ramos’ lights melted from the heat.
“My cars have sat out in 122 in Phoenix and nothing has melted on or off,” one commenter stated.
“Ain’t no way that is from the Phoenix heat,” another wrote.
According to experts, tail lights can melt due to wiring damage or faulty assembly.
If a brake light switch is sticking on, it can also overheat the lights causing melting.
More than 100 million Americans were under a heat alert on Tuesday as temperatures across the south and south west, from Florida to Death Valley, reached triple digits over consecutive days.
In Phoenix, the last time temperatures didn’t reach 110 F was on 29 June, when it hit 108 (42.2 C).
The nights are offering Arizonans little respite. On Monday, a new record was set when temperatures didn’t drop below 95F (35C) overnight.
Arizona State University meteorologist Randy Cerveny told the Associated Press that a dangerous heat dome that had brought record temperatures to the Southwest was currently centered over Phoenix.
He said the increasing temperatures in recent decades were due to human influence on climate.
Ms Ramos did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
