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Seniors hospitalized after lining up in the heat for Trump’s Arizona rally

Trump's first rally post-conviction led to nearly a dozen hospitalizations due to soaring temperatures

Senior Culture Editor

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As temperatures reach 108 degrees Fahrenheit (42C), a woman is tended to for heat exhaustion as supporters line up before former U.S. President and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump participates in a town hall event at Dream City Church in Phoenix, Arizona, on June 6, 2024. ( JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)
As temperatures reach 108 degrees Fahrenheit (42C), a woman is tended to for heat exhaustion as supporters line up before former U.S. President and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump participates in a town hall event at Dream City Church in Phoenix, Arizona, on June 6, 2024. ( JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)

Donald Trump's first post-conviction rally was scheduled to start at 2 p.m on Thursday at the Dream City Church in Phoenix, Arizona, but many hopeful attendees landed in the hospital before he even took the stage.

According to MTN, many people were lined up outside of the church well before doors officially opened at 10 a.m. and the brutal heat began to take its toll. The Phoenix Fire Department was on hand to treat those affected, many of whom were seniors, transporting just under a dozen people to be treated for heat exhaustion. 

Per reporting by Forbes, "Phoenix hit 111 degrees around 3 p.m.—tying the daily heat record set in 2016, according to the National Weather Service—and marking the first day the Valley reached 110 degrees this year." Having caught wind of this, resulting coverage of the hospitalizations by several outlets, and comments made by many on social media, turned a stink eye to Trump for putting his followers at risk.

"Trump takes 6 days off from campaigning then sends 11 people to the hospital holding a rally at 2:00 PM in Arizona in June when it’s 108 degrees," writes Ron Filipkowski, Editor-in Chief of MTN, in a post to X. "He doesn’t care at all about these people. He wants their money & their votes so he can acquire power. When will the rubes wake up?"

Perhaps loopy from the heat himself, Trump's speech at the Turning Point USA sponsored event included a rather creative swipe at President Biden, accusing him of falling out of airplanes and helicopters.

By Kelly McClure

Kelly McClure is Salon's Senior Culture Editor, where she helps further coverage of TV, film, music, books and culture trends from a unique and thoughtful angle. Her work has also appeared in Vulture, Vanity Fair, Vice and many other outlets that don't start with the letter V. She is the author of one sad book called "Something Is Always Happening Somewhere." Follow her on Bluesky: @WolfieVibes

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