North Texas remains under an Excessive Heat Warning due to the high heat and humidity.
North Texas remains under an Excessive Heat Warning due to the high heat and humidity.
At Plano’s Oak Point Rec Center, swimmers could not wait to hit the water. A line of people stood in the shade waiting for the gates to open on Monday.
The indoor facilities were just as busy with crowded basketball courts and people taking advantage of activities in the air conditioning.
Mother Kennetha McGowan signed her family up for an annual membership so they had somewhere to escape the heat.
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“Either stay inside altogether, which we can’t do that with three kids so we’ll bring them here,” McGowan said.
Firefighters with Plano Fire-Rescue encourage people to drink extra water and avoid the outdoors as much as possible. Their crew postponed scheduled training this week so their staff is only outside when they’re responding to a call.
Trucks are stocked with coolers and extra cold packs, anticipating more calls for heat stroke and heat exhaustion.
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“Even those that say ‘born and raised in Texas [or] been there done that’ – this is really, really hot,” said Lt. Daniel Daly with Plano Fire Rescue. “And it will catch us if we’re not careful.”
In Prosper, the fire department along with Cook Children's Hospital demonstrated the dangers of leaving a child in a sweltering vehicle.
"Even on a 70-degree day, temperatures can climb as much as 117 degrees inside of a vehicle and on a hot day it's been clocked as much as 172 degrees," said Prosper Fire Chief Stewart Blasingame.
He encouraged the public to immediately call 911 if you see a child or animal left in a vehicle.
Texas leads the nation in hot car child deaths, according to the child safety advocacy group KidsAndCars.org.
HOT CAR SAFETY
According to the National Safety Council, if it's 95 degrees outside, a car's internal temperature could climb to 129 degrees in 30 minutes. After just 10 minutes, temperatures inside could reach 114 degrees.
A child's body temperature heats up three to five times faster than an adult's, and heatstroke can begin when a person's core body temperature reaches 104 degrees. According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, a core temperature of 107 degrees is lethal.
