Hot Weather Is Here! How Good Was Your Preparation?

Mine wasn’t! Extreme hot weather came with a vengeance where I live in Washington state, USA. Prepared for this record-breaking hot weather? Inadequate, to say the least. What about you?

In the past, I have shared about emergency preparations for power outages in warm and cold weather. But the emergency of severe heat? Never thought about it.

We live in a temperate summer climate. Occasional days in the 90s, usually no more than three to five in a row. Rare days over 100. So we decided not to install air conditioning when we did our major remodel. AC can cause problems for my muscles. We put ceiling fans in the bedrooms; ceilings in other rooms were too low for fans.

So when forecasters predicted extremely hot weather (104-112) lasting a week, we did make sure our fans were working and that we had an adequate water and ice supply. We also have a travel trailer with AC. We knew houses we could relocate to. I checked out heat illness symptoms, just to be prepared. So we thought everything would be fine—hot but fine.

We missed one huge problem. I soon realized I could no longer sweat, probably due to Sjogren’s. An inability to sweat in very high heat can easily lead to an elevated body temperature and ultimately, I presume, to heat illness. I spoke to my medical provider, checked my temp frequently, lived under fans, proactively stayed hydrated, and used cold cloths in several places on my body.

Could (or did) such a thing happen to you?

I’ll share some ideas I learned during this hot experience. Maybe they can help you.

Steps to be prepared for hot weather

• Assess your environment to see how you can stay cool.
  • Does your house have air conditioning?
    • If not, do you know of somewhere you can go if needed?
      • Community cooling centers.
      • Libraries
      • Shopping malls.
      • Friends.
  • Do you have enough fans for the number of rooms?
    • Can they be moved around?
  • Do you have an adequate supply of ice and water?
• Evaluate your health.
  • Do any of your conditions make you more susceptible to heat problems?
    • If so, be sure to consult your medical practitioner.
• Figure out mechanisms to get cool.
  • In addition to AC or fans
    • Stay hydrated.
    • Replace lost electrolytes with sports drinks.
    • Use cold cloths on the back of your neck, near your heart, under arms, and in the groin area.
    • With cool cloths, wipe your face, neck, arms, and legs.
• Learn symptoms of the various heat illnesses.
  • Heat exhaustion and especially heatstroke require immediate medical attention. Delay can cause a heatstroke to be fatal.
• Know when you might need medical intervention because of your unique situation.

Our weather

In case you’re wondering, we had 102 – 105 several days, maxing out at 109 for 2 days. We did break many records that week. Unfortunately, we are staying at the 90s for the foreseeable future. Still very hot, but manageable.

PS. I saw my doctor yesterday and learned that my inability to sweat does increase my chances for a heat stroke. We reviewed prevention measures; I added her suggestions to this article.

Do you have additional ways to stay cool?

The state of Maine and wunderground.com have articles to help you in your preparation for hot weather.