BOSTON (WHDH) - Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh has declared a citywide heat emergency ahead of what’s expected to be a brutally hot weekend across the Bay State.
Temperatures in the city could near 100 degrees on Saturday and Sunday with “feels like” temperatures topping out at 112 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.
Almost all of Massachusetts, including Suffolk County, is under an excessive heat warning.
Beaches and swimming pools were packed with people on Friday.
One woman enjoying her time in the pool said, “It’s too hot to be out there, I would rather be in here.”
Cooling centers will open at Boston Centers for Youth & Families locations in all of the city’s neighborhoods.
>>>For a full list of cooling centers, click here.
Residents will be permitted to swim at the city pools free of charge during normal operating hours.
“I can’t take the heat, I get so hot,” a woman not looking forward to the heat wave said. “I’ll be laying in my central air and not going outside, not at all.”
The scorching sun did not slow down workers from setting up for this weekend’s carnival in Newton, or the hundreds of people on the duck boat tours.
One man walking around Boston has a trick to mentally staying cool in this dreadful heat.
“As long as you keep moving and think cool thoughts, you’ll be okay,” he said.
Health officials are warning that excessive heat and humidity may cause illnesses and stress during outdoor exertion or extended exposure.
Medical Director of the Boston Public Health Commission, Jennifer Lowe, said, “People who run, we recommend going early in the morning but even then you still have to be conscientious about hydrating really well and being aware of excessive heat and signs of heat exhaustion.”
It is summer in New England, and people are definitely enjoying the heat, like performers on Carson beach.
“The hotter I get, the hotter I play,” a performer said.
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