According to the City of Tampa’s website, cooling centers will be open during the day through Sunday at the following locations:
- David M Barksdale Active Older Adult Center at Macfarlane Park, 1801 N. Lincoln Ave., Tampa, FL 33607
- Cuscaden Park, 2900 N. 15th St., Tampa, FL 33605
- Cordelia B Hunt Community Center at Al Lopez Park, 4810 N. Himes Ave., Tampa, FL 33614
According to the City, “Cooling centers will be staffed by City of Tampa employees, AmeriCorps service members, and Red Cross volunteers. The centers opened on Thursday, August 10, 2023, from 12:00 pm to 7:00 pm. Cooling centers will re-open Friday, August 11, 2023, through Sunday, August 13, 2023, from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm.
“These cooling centers will be free of charge and available to all members of the public to ensure the safety of residents who are exposed to extreme heat conditions. Light snacks and water will also be available.”
Outside of Tampa
If you don’t live in the City of Tampa, you can check the website of your city or county to see if they have cooling centers or other ways to seek refuge from the heat.
HEATSAFE text alert system
The City of Tampa also has a text alert system, HEATSAFE. It says, “Future messaging will include heat advisories, cooling center openings, tips to stay cool, and other heat-related information such as utility bill assistance. To sign up simply text HEATSAFE to 888-777.”
Get cool in pools and splash pads
The City of Tampa has “12 pools and 9 splash pads that are operated by the City of Tampa and located throughout the city. A full list of pools and splash pads can be found on the Tampa Parks & Recreation webpage. Plans to extend open swim hours at the City of Tampa’s Parks and Recreation pools in response to extreme heat are currently underway. Updates pertaining to this will be released as they become available.”
Link to human-caused climate heating
Air temperatures and ocean temperatures are breaking records and will continue to rise because humans have pumped greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, mainly through burning fossil fuels.
The News Service of Florida reports on warning stickers
As heat advisories continue, motorists fueling up across Florida will soon see stickers on gas pumps warning against leaving children and pets in vehicles. “This time of year, when all of our families are getting back to school, and we know that everybody is busy changing schedules, we want to make sure that people are removing their pets out of these cars, that they’re moving their kids out of these cars,” Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson said Friday before placing a sticker on a pump at a BP station in Titusville. Simpson’s Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services oversees regulation of gas pumps. The stickers were an idea of Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey. “It goes back to just a constant reminder to make sure that you’re not doing it (leaving children and pets in hot vehicles),” Ivey said. “Again, we all, you know (say), ‘I’m just gonna run in the store for a moment. I’m going to be right back out.’ And then something happens that you’re in there longer than you anticipate.” A 2016 Florida law allows bystanders to break windows of vehicles to rescue pets or vulnerable people believed to be in danger from heat.
