NORTH BATTLEFORD - With the heat wave on everyone's mind this week, the North Battleford Fire Department plans to offer two pop-up spray parks to help people beat the heat.
The first one will be today, Wednesday, at Connaught Elementary School from noon to 3 p.m.
The second will be Thursday at Centennial Park, north of the Skate Park, from noon to 3 p.m.
The city is asking everyone to take the following precautions during the extreme heat:
• Drink plenty of cool liquids before you feel thirsty
• Avoid alcoholic and caffeinated beverages, as they will dehydrate you
• Wear loose-fitting, light-coloured clothing
• Consider rescheduling activities to cooler hours of the day
• Do not leave any person or pet inside a closed vehicle for any length of time
Heat warning:
Environment and Climate Change Canada has issued a heat warning for the region due to the extreme temperatures for the Battlefords, Meadow Lake and Lloydminster region.
Meteorologist Terri Lang said to be considered a heat warning, the daytime highs need to be at least 29 degrees Celsius or with a humidex of 34 degrees, with overnight lows of at least 14 degrees. The warm temperatures have to last over two days.
Today, the high will be 32 degrees, with a possible humidex of 35 degrees.
"Keeping in mind, the humidex takes into account humidity, it's like a windchill," Lang said. "It's a calculated number, it's not a real number. It feels like a value. Because of our bodies, and the way that we cool off, we sweat. When there's more humidity we have trouble sweating. So, the more humid it gets, the harder it is for us to cool off. That's why we get this humidex value. So the temperatures will be near 32, and the humidex value near 35. The overnight lows tonight will be 17."
Tomorrow will see a high near 32 degrees again, with the humidex seeming closer to 40 degrees.
"[A humidex of 40] is pretty high for this area. We've had a couple of really dry years, so we are not used to the humidity here," Lang said. "It's rained so much through May and June. The crops are actually growing, so there is a lot of humidity around."
She noted while 40 degrees seems high for the humidex - the humidity index, it doesn't necessarily mean the temperature will actually be 40.
"With the humidex, it just feels like 40 degrees in a dry heat," Lang said.
If people can last through the week, the heat warning should be pretty much over with by Friday.
Temperatures will then cool off a bit into the higher 20 degrees. Typically, average highs for this time of year are around 25 or 26 degrees.
"We're getting closer to average temperatures," Lang said.
She added there is an indication the heat might return mid-week next week, but in the meantime there should be some respite over the weekend.
