Town Opens ‘Cooling Center’ As State Agencies Post Heat-Related Warnings

By John Voket

First Selectman Pat Llodra, Newtown’s Emergency Management Director Bill Halstead, and the Newtown Health District have activated the Newtown Municipal Center at Fairfield Hills as the Town’s Cooling Center Wednesday through Friday from 7 am to 7 pm.

“Any resident should feel free to come to the municipal center to escape the heat, and enjoy the SCAN Art show,” said Donna Culbert, who is director of the Health District and Newtown’s deputy emergency management director.

Ms Culbert said there are other “cool” locations in Newtown to seek relief from the heat, including the Cyrenius Booth Library at 25 Main Street. Library hours are Monday through Thursday from 9:30 am to 8 pm, Friday, 11 am to 5 pm, and Saturday from 9:30 am to 5 pm.

The Newtown Senior Center at 14 Riverside Road, Sandy Hook also offers air-conditioned comfort, and is open Monday through Friday, 8 am to 4:30 pm.

The Edmond Town Hall Theatre at 45 Main Street is air conditioned and offers 1 pm matinees Monday thru Saturday, 4 pm matinees Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, also evening shows at 7 and 9 pm.

“Residents can also cool off when they go grocery shopping,” Ms Culbert suggested, pointing anyone seeking relief from the heat to either Big Y, Caraluzzi’s, or Stop & Shop.

Ms Culbert and local emergency and health officials also ask residents to check on any elderly or frail neighbors to be certain they are fairing well during the anticipated heat wave.

“You might want to suggest that they come to the municipal center, or any of the other cool locations if their residence is overheated,” Ms Culbert said.

With temperatures across the state surging well into the 90s this week, the Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH) and the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection (DESPP) are also urging people to protect themselves and to seek out options to cool down within their communities. The public can dial 211 to find a cooling center in their area.

By Thursday afternoon, Weather Underground is forecasting a heat index of 101 degrees for the Newtown area with actual temperatures soaring into the mid or high 90s with humidity around 65 percent. The same holds true for Friday, with greater likelihood of an afternoon or evening thunder shower.

Temps slip back into the mid-80s but the humidity is due to hang on in the region through the weekend.

In addition to the heat, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) has forecasted unhealthy air quality due to elevated concentrations of ground-level ozone pollution throughout all of Connecticut for Thursday, July 21, and Friday, July 22.

A forecast of “Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups” (Code Orange) has been issued due to high concentrations of ground-level ozone for Thursday, July 21, and possible “Unhealthy” levels (Code Red) by Friday July 22, when the core of hottest air mass moves into the region.

Anyone can be affected by ground-level ozone, but groups particularly sensitive include children and adults who are active outdoors, and people with respiratory disease, such as asthma. Sensitive people who experience effects at lower ozone concentrations are likely to experience more serious effects at higher concentrations.

“Extreme hot weather can be very dangerous, especially for the elderly, young children, and those who work outdoors,” said DPH Commissioner Jewel Mullen, MD. “It’s important that people take frequent breaks when doing heavy outdoor work during high heat days. Drink a lot of fluids, stay indoors or in the shade when it’s most hot, and wear lightweight, loose-fitting clothing to beat the heat.”

“While pools, lakes, and beaches are a great way to cool off from the heat, it’s important that people are careful and take safety precautions in and around water,” said DESPP Commissioner Reuben F. Bradford. “We also remind people to never keep children or pets in closed or locked vehicles and to check on elderly neighbors and loved ones, especially in extreme heat.”

DPH and DESPP offered these hot weather safety tips:

*Drink more fluids (nonalcoholic), regardless of your activity level. Don’t wait until you are thirsty to drink. Warning: If your doctor generally limits the amount of fluid you drink or has you on water pills, ask him/her how much you should drink while the weather is hot.

*Stay indoors and, if at all possible, stay in an air-conditioned place. If your home does not have air conditioning, go to the movies, shopping mall, public library, or a friend’s house/apartment with air conditioning — even a few hours spent in an air-conditioned environment can help your body stay cooler when you go back into the heat.

*Wear lightweight, light-colored, loose-fitting clothing.

*If you must be out in the heat, limit your outdoor activity to early morning and evening hours.

*Protect yourself from the sun by wearing a wide-brimmed hat (also keeps you cooler) and sunglasses and by putting on sunscreen of SPF 15 or higher (the most effective products say “UVA/UVB protection” on their labels).

Particularly with regard to pool and swimming safety, the following tips are important:

*Never leave children, even those who can swim, unattended in, around, or near pools or other water sources — not even for a few moments. A child can drown in the moment it takes to answer a phone.

*Never swim alone. Use the buddy system and maintain eye contact.

*Keep pool area locked and secure when not in use.

*Swim only in supervised and approved areas.

*Keep rescue equipment near the pool. Have emergency flotation devices and a phone near the pool.

*Enforce water safety rules. No running, pushing, or dunking.

*Have a professional inspect all entrapment hazards in the pool, including the pump and drain.

*Know and mark the location of the electrical cut-off switch for the pool pump.

*Learn CPR and water rescue techniques.