Preparing before extreme heat

During a heat emergency

When outdoors

Extreme heat terms

To prepare before extreme heat, you should:

• Install window air conditioners snugly; insulate if necessary.
• Check air-conditioning ducts for proper insulation.
• Weather-strip doors and sills to keep cool air in.
• Cover windows that receive morning or afternoon sun with drapes, shades, awnings, or louvers. Outdoor awnings or louvers can reduce the heat that enters a home by up to 80 percent.
• Keep storm windows up all year.
• Install temporary window reflectors (for use between windows and drapes), such as aluminum foil-covered cardboard, to reflect heat back outside.

During a heat emergency, you should:

• Stay indoors as much as possible and limit exposure to the sun.
• Stay on the lowest floor out of the sunshine if air conditioning is not available.
• Consider spending the warmest part of the day in public buildings such as libraries, schools, movie theaters, shopping malls, and other community facilities. Circulating air can cool the body by increasing the perspiration rate of evaporation.
• Eat well-balanced, light, and regular meals. Avoid using salt tablets unless directed to do so by a physician.
• Drink plenty of water and avoid beverages that contain alcohol, caffeine, or a lot of sugar.
• Make sure your pets have plenty of water.
• Never leave any person or pets alone in closed vehicles.
• Dress in loose-fitting, lightweight, and light-colored clothes that cover as much skin as possible.
• Protect face and head by wearing a wide-brimmed hat.
• Check on family, friends, and neighbors who do not have air conditioning and who spend much of their time alone.

When outdoors, you should:

• Avoid strenuous work during the warmest part of the day. Use a buddy system when working in extreme heat, and take frequent breaks.
• Wear a wide-brimmed hat, sun block, and light-colored, loose fitting clothes when outdoors.
• At first signs of heat illness (dizziness, nausea, headaches, muscle cramps), move to a cooler location, rest for a few minutes and slowly drink a cool beverage. Seek medical attention immediately if you do not feel better.
• Avoid sunburn: it slows the skins ability to cool itself. Use a sunscreen lotion with a high SPF (sun protection factor) rating.
• Avoid extreme temperature changes. A cool shower immediately after coming inside from hot temperatures can result in hypothermia, particularly for elderly or very young people.

Familiarize yourself with extreme heat terms to help identify potential hazards:

• Heat Wave: Prolonged period of excessive heat often combined with excessive humidity.
• Heat Index: A number in degrees Fahrenheit (F) that tells how hot it feels when relative humidity is added to the air temperature. Exposure to full sunshine can increase the heat index by 15 degrees.
• Heat Cramps: Muscular pains and spasms due to heavy exertion. Although heat cramps are the least severe, they are often the first signal that the body is having trouble with the heat.
• Heat Exhaustion: Typically occurs when people exercise heavily or work in a hot, humid place where body fluids are lost through heavy sweating. Blood flow to the skin increases, causing blood flow to decrease to the vital organs. This results in a form of mild shock. If not treated, the victim's condition will worsen. Body temperature will keep rising and the victim may suffer heat stroke.
• Heat Stroke: A life-threatening condition. The victim's temperature control system, which produces sweating to cool the body, stops working. The body temperature can rise so high that brain damage and death may result if the body is not cooled quickly.
• Sun Stroke: Another term for heat stroke.