Tulsa Deals With The Heat

The mercury pushed past 100 degrees for the first time this summer on Sunday. Tulsa is under a heat advisory for the second day in a row. <br/><br/>Emergency officials warn, this heatwave can be deadly.

Sunday, July 16th 2006, 6:02 pm

By: News On 6

The mercury pushed past 100 degrees for the first time this summer on Sunday. Tulsa is under a heat advisory for the second day in a row.

Emergency officials warn, this heatwave can be deadly.

Judging by the crowd at Tulsa's Lacy Park, its almost too hot to swim. While a splash in the pool could help you keep your cool, EMSA says when it gets this hot it's better to just stay indoors.

EMSA paramedic James Postoak: "too much exposure to the heat. People become exhausted, they can pass out. The absense of sweating that's a very dangerous sign, you could be approaching heat stroke, which is life-threatening."

EMSA has responded to a dozen heat-related calls, since Friday. The elderly and those with chronic medical conditions are at most risk for heat-related illness. But there is help out there for those folks, who can't affort the luxury of air conditioning.

â€œWith the heat being so intense right now it seems we're doing a lot of emergency installs.â€ Nick Abrahamson is with the Tulsa Weather Coalition, an organization who loans air conditioning units to folks in need, who have serious medical conditions. He says the coaliton has decreased heat-related deaths by more than 90 percent, since the organization began.

They've placed about 100 units, so far this summer. And as the temperature climbs, requests keep pouring in. â€œIf they don't have air conditioning and they can't relocate to a church, community center, or mall or something. The heat can act like a sauna and they'll just burn up."

But some folks have to be out in these temperatures to earn a living.

Watermelon man Paul Thomas: "well, when they're ice cold and its hot outside people like eating ice cold watermelon." Thomas has rigged up a little man-made shade and he's drinking a lot of water. Every now and then a little watermelon doesn't hurt either.