Weekend Wrap: Biggest Arizona stories over Memorial Day weekend

PHOENIX — You’ve been busy with Memorial Day weekend activities.

We understand.

Here are the top stories you might have missed over the last couple days.

USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor closed indefinitely

Damage to the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu was worse than expected and it will remain closed indefinitely, officials said.

Boat transportation to the attraction was suspended May 6 after one of the vessel operators noticed a crack on the outside of the memorial, Hawaii News Now reported .

Tourists were allowed to disembark at the memorial after crews completed interim repairs. But the cracks reappeared hours later, indicating a more serious issue.

“There is a brow or an edge where the visitor ramp meets the memorial, and at that point, there’s been some fissures located on the exterior,” said Jay Blount, a spokesman for the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument. “After further investigation on the interior, it was determined that the structure is not supporting the loading ramp the way that we need.”

Six Flags enters Phoenix-area market, but it’s not bringing rides

Six Flags is coming to the Valley — sort of.

The theme park company announced this week it has entered into an agreement to take over Wet ‘n’ Wild Phoenix, the largest water park in Arizona.

The facility, which actually is located in Glendale at 4243 W. Pinnacle Peak Rd., is one of five properties the Six Flags Entertainment Corp. is acquiring in the deal.

“These are all fantastic properties that complement our existing portfolio and provide tremendous added value and cross-visitation opportunities for our extensive membership and season-pass base,” Six Flags President Jim Reid-Anderson said in a news release.

The deal with affiliates of Premier Parks LLC to acquire the lease rights to operate the parks owned by EPR Properties makes Six Flags the largest waterpark operator in North America.

IKEA drops plans for second store in Phoenix area

Furniture giant IKEA announced it has dropped its plan to build a second store in the Phoenix area.

The store, which was originally announced in September 2017, will not be built near the Loop 101 and Bethany Home Road in Glendale, next to University of Phoenix Stadium.

It was expected to open in spring of 2020.

At the time, IKEA said it would hire about 500 construction workers to build the store and another 300 to work inside it.

Citing that the company is looking to expand to more urban city centers in order to be more accessible to customers, IKEA is changing some of its expansion plans.

“We are in a rapidly changing retail environment. To be fit for long term growth, we are creating a new business model to make sure we’re accessible and convenient for our customers today and in the future,” IKEA senior public affairs specialist Latisha Bracy said in an email.

“While this is an extremely difficult decision, we will not be moving forward with our plans to build a store in Glendale. We appreciate the outpouring of support and excitement that our fans have expressed, and we are disappointed that we will not be able to physically join the vibrant Glendale community.”

How hot can a car get parked in the Phoenix sun? What about the shade?

Parked in the sun for an hour, car seats reach an average of 123 degrees in the summer, according to a study by ASU and UC San Diego.

In one of the cars studied, the dashboard reached 192 degrees, according to state climatologist Nancy Selover.

These temperatures inside cars parked in the heat can burn tender skin.

“On a child’s tender skin, if their child seat was exposed to the sun, that would be extremely hot,” Selover said.

The study went a step further, examining different types of cars in the shade, as well.

Though the inside of the car was significantly cooler, the dashboard averaged 118 degrees, seats averaged 105 degrees, and the temperature of a hypothetical two-year-old child in the backseat would break 100 degrees within 60 minutes.

“Most studies don’t look at that,” Selover said. “There’s sort of an assumption that, well, if the car’s parked in the shade, it’s not going to be a problem. we found that it certainly can be.”

Children can catch life-threatening hyperthermia when they reach a temperature of 104 degrees.

Crews recover body of trapped worker days after drill rig topples

The body of a worker who was trapped after an enormous drill rig fell near Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport was recovered Thursday, according to the Phoenix Fire Department.

The adult male was pronounced dead at the scene. Phoenix Police identified him Friday morning as 52-year-old Melvin Self.

Authorities say the body was found Thursday afternoon after more than 50 tons of dirt was removed from a hole more than 30 feet deep.

The rig fell over about 9:30 a.m. Monday during construction for the Sky Train guideway system.

Authorities underwent rescue efforts near 29th Street and Buckeye Road to recover the unidentified man’s body for three days, suspending the search Monday night for safety reasons.

They resumed Tuesday once two larger cranes were brought in, Capt. Larry Subervi, a spokesman with the Phoenix Fire Department, said in an email.

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