Pandemic heatwave pits relief against public health

BOSTON — By 11 a. m. Sunday, a line formed outside the DCR pool in Hyde Park despite the pandemic swimming conditions inside.

"Every two hours they wipe it down," said Boston resident Michael Davis, who was there with his kids. "They keep it at 50% capacities. You have to keep your mask on. You have a line where you take your mask off, then you get in the pool."

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Forecasters pegged Day Two of the heatwave as likely the hottest of all, with temperature readings close to 100 degrees Fahrenheit. With a heat emergency in effect, Davis was baffled some city pools remained closed because of COVID-19, including all pools at the city's Centers for Youth and Families.

"These kids have to have somewhere to swim. I mean it's too hot," Davis said. "They've been in the house for the last four months, now they're going to take the pools away?"

Brian Cook from Hyde Park, who also waited in line, agreed that this has been a tough time for kids.

“They been trapped in the house long enough,” he said. “You got to find something for them to do when it’s nice out. I mean they even get bored with YouTube after a while.”

For some residents, boredom is the least of their worries in a heatwave. It's staying alive. To that end, Mayor Walsh opened 21 cooling centers in neighborhoods around the city.

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By noon, no one had come into the Thomas Menino BCYF facility in Roslindale, but staff set aside two air-conditioned rooms for potential guests.

The ongoing threat of COVID-19 means fewer people can be accommodated in the cooling centers because of a need for social distancing. They won't be admitted at all if they've experienced or been around someone with common symptoms of the virus, including coughing, shortness of breath and a loss of taste or smell.

In some areas of the state, those with existing respiratory or cardiovascular issues might have problems just stepping outside.

The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection issued an Air Quality Alert for several counties, an indication ozone levels could rise to unhealthful levels.

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