Kelowna ready for hot weather with cooling stations

With hot temperatures in the immediate forecast, the City of Kelowna and Interior Health are unveiling plans to keep people safe from the heat.

“The City of Kelowna has worked with agencies throughout the region to develop a community-based plan to respond to extreme heat events that we know are becoming more frequent,” said Lance Kayfish, risk manager with the city.

The dual response comes two years after a deadly heat dome scorched the province, with the weather phenomenon being blamed for more than 600 deaths, including 60 in the Interior Health region.

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“The excess mortality that we calculated was really a wake-up call,” said Dr. Silvina Mema of Interior Health. “I would say for us here in B.C. to stay well, we need to have a plan.”

The local plan is based on B.C.’s heat alert and response system, which issues regional warnings based on temperature thresholds.

For example, in the Okanagan, if temperatures exceed 35 C for two or more days, and don’t drop below 18 C overnight, a heat warning will be issued for the region.

Misting stations will be set up in various downtown locations, while the warning will serve as a reminder to check up on those more vulnerable.

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The warning would be elevated to an extreme heat emergency if temperatures of 35 C or more happen for several days.

“That will be done through an evasive alert,” said Kayfish. “So it’s the same type of alert you get during an Amber Alert where your phone makes a very loud, attention-getting noise, and you get the message that tells everyone in our region that we are now in an extreme heat emergency.”

The public library in downtown Kelowna has been designated as one of four cooling centres. The other three are Parkinson’s Rec Centre, the Kelowna Family Y in Rutland and the Capital News Centre.

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BC Transit has also stepped up and will provide free rides for those needing to get to a cooling station.

“These are all measures that are going to help us avoid fatalities,” said Mema.

“And not just fatalities, but individuals feeling unwell, fainting, all of those situations that may require health care.”