Elvis fans remember death anniversary

　　

　　Thousands of Elvis Presley fans braved 105-degree heat as they gathered on Wednesday for a graveside procession to mark Thursday's 30th anniversary of his dying.

　　Thousands of Elvis Presley fans braved 105-degree heat as they gathered on Wednesday for a graveside procession to mark Thursday's 30th anniversary of his dying.

 

Johnny Isobe (L) and Masahiro Maruyama of Japan look at memorabilia left by fans near the gravesite of Elvis during a candlelight vigil at Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee August 16, 2007. Elvis Presley died at Graceland on August 16, 1977, he was found on the floor of his bathroom by fiancee Ginger Alden. (Reuters)

　　The heat led to the death of a fan from New Jersey, a 67-year-old woman.

　　Despite the promise of another furnace-like day, some fans began lining up early in the morning for the candlelight vigil, setting up umbrellas and folding chairs on the sidewalk along Elvis Presley Boulevard. The memorial ran through the night and into Thursday.

　　The procession, with fans walking mostly single-file and holding candles, filed up Graceland's long winding driveway and past Presley's grave in a small garden beside the white-columned house. Many fans carried flowers, stuffed animals and other small gifts to leave at the grave.

Memorials and flowers left by fans can be seen near the grave of Elvis Presley inside Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee August 15, 2007. Elvis died at Graceland on August 16, 1977, he was found on the floor of his bathroom by fiancee Ginger Alden. (Reuters)

　　Tom Vigil, 42, of Denver was determined not to let the heat stop him even though he was missing part of a lung from recent surgery.

　　Decked out in a black Elvis-type jumpsuit, Vigil pulled an oxygen tank behind him with a breathing tube attached to his nose.