They make a good signal fire, too.
In the later 80s a Marine reservist got left behind in the wastes of 29 Palms as his unit completed their training cycle. He was likely dead before they even realized he was missing. A determined search was made, he wasn't found. IIRC several months later, in winter, a search party of explorer scouts finally found a trace of him, his folded clothes (probably delirium) and eventually his remains. With his rifle nearby. He'd apparently headed off for the horizon lights of the town, and not the closer base areas. Across the desert training area and well off any beaten path. Punishments were made, policies and standing orders changed. 'Desert survival' training was mandated, along with the routine 'range safety' 'do not touch my unexploded ordnance' lectures for any personnel coming aboard the base to train.
I'd tell my Marines to stay on or near the MSR. to dig into the relatively cooler sub-soil and rig some shade using whatever they could, draped over the aforementioned creosote bushes, on the north side, stay in the shade. Someone will come / pass. And if they got desperate, just go right ahead and pile up some creosote bushes and light the damned things on fire. Someone would come along pretty soon. The Range Safety operation there was up a mountain ridge, overlooking hundreds of square miles of the training area. Half the guys smoked. Every MRE came with a book of matches. They'd see the fire, a persistent fire, and calls would be made and someone would come.
