Arizona community hits 110 degrees F, the highest March temperature ever recorded in the U.S.

THERMAL, Calif. (AP) — A desert community in southwestern Arizona reached 110 degrees (43.3 C) on Thursday, breaking a record for the highest March temperature ever recorded in the United States.

The record-setting temperature was recorded just outside Martinez Lake, Arizona, in the Yuma Desert, as a winter heat wave scorched the Southwest, according to the National Weather Service. The community is about 145 miles (233 kilometers) west of Phoenix.

The blistering wave of heat this week has established record highs in dozens of locations, including Phoenix, San Diego, Los Angeles, Las Vegas and San Francisco.

The previous record of 108 degrees (42.2 C) had been set in Rio Grande City, Texas, in 1954 and was tied Wednesday by North Shore, California.

By Thursday, several more California locations had hit 108 degrees (42.2 C). Among them were Cathedral City, near the desert destination of Palm Springs, and the aptly named town of Thermal, northeast of San Diego.

Thermal was forecast to hit 110 (43.3 C) on Friday.

Ruben Pantaleon said the heat didn’t bother him as he used a squeegee to clean car windshields at an intersection in Thermal on Thursday afternoon. He wore shorts and had a supply of electrolyte drinks on hand.

“I drank three of those so far,” he said under the blaring sun. “It’s the desert. It gets real hot. I’m not worried about it.”

Several cities on Wednesday experienced their hottest March day in four d...