Heat wave blasts Miami Valley; Are you staying safe?

DAYTON, Ohio — It’s the third day in a row of temperatures above 90 degrees in the Miami Valley, making it an official heat wave.

That means there are a lot of people who are spending the day trying to beat the heat, whether they are at work or just working to keep their kids cool.

People say it’s not just about beating the heat and keeping cool, but how to beat the heat safely.

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Everyone is attracted to rivers, but there can be strong currents and you’re not supposed to swim there anyway - making it even more important to find ways to safely beat the heat.

Anna Rebets, of Dayton, said, “We saw there was a little splash pad/park here, so we decided to walk down and let them cool off.”

Rebates and friends let their kids cool off at the Five Rivers MetroParks splash pad at Riverscape. They felt fortunate to have an option to pools, lakes or rivers.

Daniela Isakov said, “So, its really nice to have a splash park. You know they can run in and out of it and the injury risk is pretty low.”

The city of Dayton operates seven splash parks that are open noon to 8pm daily. Another splash pad is located at McIntosh Park.

You can bet that even the adults who were playing basketball at McIntosh park would like to take a walk in the water. But, what about adults on the job beating the heat?

News Center 7 saw road crews and construction crews working in heat indexes that approached 100 degrees.

They said they wear light colored clothing when possible and take extra breaks to stay safe and drink fluids, especially water.’

Mariah Edwards was using frozen water to beat the heat.

“I’m going to eat it and it will help cool me off,” Edwards said.

Edwards and another mother were working to keep small children cool, but putting blankets over the stroller to block the sun.

And, they were prepared to stop at the downtown library for a blast of air conditioning before walking home.

This is the last day expected to be above 90 degrees this week. Temperatures are expected to drop a little. However, there’s no doubt we’ll face high heat again in July and August and it’s important to have a plant to beat the heat in a safe way.

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