I was interviewed by a reporter from the New Haven Register this afternoon. We were talking about Tuesday’s anticipated temperatures. The forecast has been reasonably consistent since last week with high temperatures and dew points.
For most people this will just be a briefly uncomfortable day. Flip the switch. Turn on the a/c. Worry not. Most of us are insulated from the ravages of weather extremes. Modern science has been kind to us.
Then there are the people who live in isolation often in homes/apartments sealed tight as can be. I don’t have the stats, but I instinctively feel they’re older long time residents of neighborhoods that have changed around them. Their windows are closed and locked–maybe nailed shut.
Warranted or not crime is a bigger fear than heat.
They will be very hot tomorrow. It will be dangerously hot. Some of these people are isolated from the rest of society. There’s no one to check and make sure they’re OK. There’s no one who cares.
Tonight I will sound like a nervous Nellie, but my admonitions probably won’t be for you. I’m talking to these people living out-of-sight.
I always worry.
Made your admonitions tonight, Geoff. Don’t worry about what people may say. YOU CARE for those who are older and may not be able to get around as easily. My wife and I will be checking on friends and family far and wide to make sure they are OK.
Geoff,
Another nurse reader here — You might also mention that older people and babies do not have the fat layer beneath the skin the rest of us have that acts as insulation, so they are at greater risk from high and low environmental temperatures. AND, many medications reduce the body’s ability to sweat or do the other things a body needs to do to dissipate the heat — another big risk factor. Common conditions, like diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure can cause big problems in the heat.
And the key to recognizing impending heat stroke? If somebody is not responding the way they normally do, or if they aren’t making sense when they’re talking to you — call 911. Right away.