San Diego, June 14 (RHC)-- Record heat is set to grip the U.S. southwest this week, with excessive heat warnings issued in at least eight states and temperatures soaring to more than 120 degrees in some areas. 

The extreme heat is likely to exacerbate wildfire risks and the ongoing drought, which now affects over a quarter of the western United States.  And nearly 2 million people in Northern California are under a water shortage emergency. 

Utah Governor Spencer Cox recently called on his state’s residents to pray for rain.  In southern Oregon, water supply from the Klamath Basin was shut down to protect native fish species, leading some farmers to threaten to release water by force.