内容摘要：Native wood sculptures adorn the yard of Felix Ashley on the Navajo Nation in Dilkon, Ariz., Oct. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

Native wood sculptures adorn the yard of Felix Ashley on the Navajo Nation in Dilkon, Ariz., Oct. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

Phillip Laster Jr., a lineman who played for a top Mississippi high school, had collapsed on the field during an August 2022 practice. At the time, the family says the heat index was 102 degrees (38.9 degrees Celsius) on the football field.“They kept compressing his chest trying to bring him back. No response, no response. Never a heartbeat,” said Laster, recalling how she dropped her purse, called her husband and started praying.

“I said I was going to call all the prayer warriors and bring my son back. I wanted him to come back,” she continued. “At that point, it was just an unbelievable moment. I can’t believe my son was gone. I could not believe it ... I was in a state of shock ... that he died ... at football practice.”Phillip Laster Sr. and his wife Ashanta Laster hold a football signed by teammates of their son Phillip Laster Jr., in Brandon, Miss., Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, that was given to them on senior night after Laster Jr.'s passing. A portrait of Laster Jr. is behind them. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)Phillip Laster Sr. and his wife Ashanta Laster hold a football signed by teammates of their son Phillip Laster Jr., in Brandon, Miss., Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, that was given to them on senior night after Laster Jr.'s passing. A portrait of Laster Jr. is behind them. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

The death of Laster underscores the dangers facing high school football players, mostly in the Southeast, who are collapsing and dying in late summer at the start of season. Players are most at risk of sufferingdue to searing temperatures and high humidity. Those conditions have

, with extremely hot days becoming more frequent since 1970 in 88% of locations nationwide analyzed by Climate Central, a nonprofit science research group.

At least 58 players have died fromMiners work at the D4 Gakombe coltan quarry in Rubaya, Democratic Republic of Congo, May 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)

Miners work at the D4 Gakombe coltan quarry in Rubaya, Democratic Republic of Congo, May 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)A miner rests at the D4 Gakombe coltan quarry in Rubaya, Democratic Republic of Congo, May 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)

A miner rests at the D4 Gakombe coltan quarry in Rubaya, Democratic Republic of Congo, May 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)Miners work at the D4 Gakombe coltan quarry in Rubaya, Democratic Republic of Congo, May 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)