Our house is an oven. We don't have AC but I did buy a mattress for the basement and Jack and I have been sleeping down there. The big guy toughs it out upstairs with the dogs. The dogs are suffering too, panting and generally just draping themsevles across the tile, hoping to cool off even a little. I've been giving them cold sponge baths which the vets recommend. No walks. Too hot.
And still we're the lucky ones. My work has AC. I can afford a house with a basement. To be homeless at a time like this is dangerous. To be elderly at a time like this is dangerous too as sudden deaths in the elderly have spiked in BC this past week, much like in France in 2003 when almost 15,000 people died due to the heatwave.
I have no answers. Right now I'm just trying to get through the days until we get a respite but it's obvious that climate change is occuring and we need to deal with it somehow. It's not going to go away.
Nightmarish times. So much suffering. We all need each other to get through this. Not a time to go it alone.
ReplyDeleteGruesome to read about. I hope you all come out well and healthy from under that heat dome. I spent a month at temps. close to 45°C (113 F) in India (no AC) and learned how to wrap wet towels around my head and neck when going to sleep and sitting with my legs in a bucket of cold water when inside. At the time, we all laughed and thought it was a hoot. Nowadays, not so funny.
ReplyDeleteUse lots of cold water ... utilizing icepacks and ice cubes where you can! Cold showers and cold water in your tub! Stay hydrated, too!
ReplyDeleteMy husband's friend who lives in Alberta says that they've been sleeping in the basement, too. Just unbelievable. I wonder how the climate change deniers are explaining this one.
ReplyDeletePlease be safe.
Horrifying. And yet people still say, "I don't believe in it."
ReplyDeleteOne good trick with dogs is to wet a towel and drape it over them. I thought my dog would shake it off right away but clearly he appreciated the coolness and kept it on for ages and it cooled him right down. Might be worth trying. The weather everywhere has gone mad hasn't it and yet still people say there's nothing to worry about! I hope it's cooling down now for you.
ReplyDeleteThe heat dome has just been awful. It's ironic, we live in AZ, where June routinely hits 110F (43.3). We're tired of it, and we're moving north, to where they just had the heat dome. Go figure.
ReplyDeleteThere has been a lot of news on the BBC about the heatwave in western Canada. Ridiculously hot. Same in Washington and Oregon too. Let us hope that normal summer temperatures return real soon.
ReplyDeleteThat village in flames must feel like the end of days. How awful.
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