Hot spell is offset by wind, lower humidity

Jariah Woodmore demonstrates that a cooling splash of water is one of the best ways to cool down on a hot day. <font color=red><b>READ:</b> <a href="/apps/pbcs.dll/artikkel?&Dato=20070709&Kategori=NEWS12&Lopenr=70709015&Ref=AR" target="_blank "><b> Heat advisory in effect for Lenawee and Monroe counties </b></a>

It was hot yesterday, plain and simple.

But relatively low humidity and sustained winds in the teens with gusts in the mid 20s made it a bit more bearable than if the opposite had occurred.

The humidity, which hovered around 35 percent throughout the afternoon, was not really too noticeable, said Martin Thompson, hydro-meteorological technician at the National Weather Service office in Cleveland.

However, the heat sweeping across the Great Lakes region sure was noticeable and anyone with a pool was instantaneously popular.

If a pool wasn t available, a dash through a sprinkler had to suffice.

More lawns were being watered than mowed.

Joggers did their runs in the morning coolness.

And even though it s not yet the dog days of summer, canines avoided the outdoors and if available relaxed in air-conditioned comfort.

Oh, it s hot, 9-year-old Jamie Easter said, just before climbing onto Roosevelt Park pool s diving board and plunging into the cooling water.

The first time I did it, I was so scared, she reminisced.

And she ll have more opportunities because the heat will continue today and tomorrow, with temperatures expected to once again be in the mid 90s. There s also a chance of showers and thunderstorms both days.

Mayor Carty Finkbeiner, in a statement issued about 1 p.m. yesterday, said city pools normally closed on Mondays would be open today.

The mayor reminded area residents to take precautions against the heat.

If you must be outside, be sure to take in plenty of fluids. Be aware of the symptoms of heat stroke, which include dizziness, headaches, and muscle cramps. If you experience these symptoms, seek medical attention immediately, the mayor advised.

Mr. Finkbeiner said that senior citizens should avoid overexertion and, if necessary, could seek relief from the heat at local senior centers, malls, or other public areas that are air-conditioned.

He said residents who have elderly neighbors should check on them.

And he asked residents to not turn on fire hydrants.

This causes low water pressure and makes it difficult, if not impossible, for firefighters to use other hydrants in case of fire.

At the water play area at Savage Park, 645 Vance St., children and the occasional adult cooled themselves in the water spouting up from the concrete floor.

Neil Cousino, of Erie, Mich., was out bailing hay, proving a farmer s work goes on, despite the weather.

Terrence Smith, who was there with his three children, said, When they woke up this morning, they asked, We going to the park?

But Mr. Smith and his friend Wayne Lee, the father of five children, lamented decisions resulting from Toledo s budget problems, which shuttered some city pools.

I wish that we had more pools open. They re making the kids suffer, said Mr. Lee, gesturing toward a closed above-ground pool adjacent to the water park where he swam while growing up.

The popularity of the pools was evidenced at Roosevelt Park, 910 Dorr St., where Pool Manager Ruth Anne King counted about 100 children swimming at one point yesterday.

Curtis Johnson was unfazed by the heat, claiming he knows how to cope.

I m used to it, he said after just getting out of the pool. I m just dealing with it water, H2O.

Jeff Baker, of the men s ministries at the Cherry Street Mission, was concerned about the heat s effects on the homeless not only yesterday but as the summer wears on.

When the temperature reaches 90 degrees, some of our guests have heat-related illnesses, he said. It happens every summer.

While the mission has window air-conditioning units to cool its guests at night, many people go to the mission with illnesses from being outside during the day.

Yesterday s high at Toledo Express Airport, the weather service s official reporting site, was 95 degrees at 3:28 p.m.

Twelve hours earlier saw the day s low 63 at 3:31 a.m.

The normal highs and lows for the date are 83 and 62. Last year s high and low were 62 and 55.

The record high for yesterday s date is 103 set in 1936. The record high for today s date is 100, also set in 1936.

The record low for yesterday s date is 44 set in 1961. The record low for today s date is 43, also set in 1961.

Starting Wednesday, the area will experience more normal high temperatures, with the mercury expected to climb only to the mid 80s. Thursday and Friday are expected to be in the upper 70s; Saturday and Sunday in the low 80s.

Today through Wednesday, there s a chance of showers and thunderstorms.

The area can use some rain.

Since June 1, we re 1.21 inches below the normal of 4.61 inches for that period. For the year, we re 1.59 inches below the average of 17.42 inches.

Contact Ali Seitz at:aseitz@theblade.comor 419-724-6050.