This summer’s first true heat wave hit Kansas City this week, bringing with it 100-degree-plus temperatures and little wind to provide relief.
Thursday is the warmest day of the year so far. The National Weather Service is placing the area under a heat advisory until Friday night. Local officials and health care experts are urging people to stay hydrated and avoid long periods of outdoor activity as long as the advisory stays in effect.
Those who must go outside out should be wary of how they and others around them are feeling, as the odds of heat stroke are much higher. Symptoms of heat stroke include high body temperature, headaches, dizziness, nausea, confusion and passing out.
Experts also recommend having an air-conditioned place nearby where you can get out of the heat and cool off. For residents without easy access to air conditioning, several places across the metro are keeping doors open so people can cool down for free.
Libraries, public transportation and several community centers are operating as cooling centers across the Kansas City area. Here are some of the places open to the public during the heat advisory:
Kansas City, Missouri
All of the Mid-Continent Public Libraries and Kansas City Public Libraries are offering their branches as cooling centers. All cooling services are available during normal hours of operation.
Community center locations (open during normal business hours):
- Brush Creek Community Center, 3801 Emanuel Cleaver II Blvd.
- Garrison Community Center, 1124 E. 5th St.
- Gregg/Klice Community Center, 1124 E 5th Street
- Hillcrest Community Center, 10401 Hillcrest Road
- Kansas City North Community Center, 3920 N.E. Antioch Road
- Line Creek Community Center, 5940 N.W. Waukomis Drive
- Marlborough Community Center, 8200 The Paseo Blvd.
- Southeast Community Center, 4201 E. 63rd St.
- Tony Aguirre Community Center, 2050 W. Pennway St.
- Westport Roanoke Community Center, 3601 Roanoke Road
In addition to community centers, many of the City’s swimming pools and spray grounds are open:
- Blue Valley Park Sprayground, East 23rd Street and Topping Avenue
- Central Park Sprayground, Linwood Boulevard and Bales Avenue
- Douglas Park Sprayground, 2632 Jarboe Street
- Gillham Sprayground, East 41st Street and Gillham Avenue
- Harmony Park Sprayground, East 10th Street and Agnes Avenue
- Loose Park Sprayground, West 52nd Terrace and Summit Street
- Lykins Square Playground, East 8th Street and Jackson Avenue
- Parade Park Sprayground, East 17th Terrace and The Paseo Boulevard
- Spring Valley Park Sprayground, East 28th Street and Spring Valley Park Road
- Sunnyside Park Sprayground, 8255 Summit Street
Public transportation:
Beating the heat can be as easy as getting on a KCATA bus or the Kansas City Streetcar to cool down while taking a ride somewhere else or even back to the same spot. The streetcar and buses are free to ride.
Independence, Missouri
Independence has offered Roger T. Sermon Community Center, 201 N. Dodgion Ave., as a cooling center on June 29 and 30.
There are also spraygrounds and splash pads located at 24 Highway and North Delaware and 24th and Hardy.
Clay County, Missouri
- The Salvation Army, Northland Location, 5306 N. Oak Trafficway, Kansas City
- North Kansas City YMCA, 1999 Iron Street, North Kansas City
- Salvation Army, 108 W Broadway Street, Excelsior Springs
- Liberty Community Center, 1600 S Withers Road, Liberty
Johnson County, Kansas
All of 14 locations in the Johnson County Library system are offering their buildings as cooling centers. A list of branches and operating hours is available here.
There are also three splash pads available:
- Thompson Park, 8045 Santa Fe Dr.
- Roe Park, 10400 Roe Ave.
- Sapling Grove Park, 8210 Grant St.
Wyandotte County, Kansas
Wyandotte County is offering a variety of community centers, pools and splash parks as cooling centers.
Other tips:
- If your home does not have air conditioning, please take cool showers, or place cool towels on the neck, arm pits, and head.
- Wear lightweight and loose-fitting clothes.
- Never leave children, pets or others alone in closed vehicles: within minutes, the temperature inside a car can reach over 140 degrees and this can kill in just a few more minutes.
For further heat-related safety tips, visit ready.gov/heat.
