Center Serves as a Safe Haven From the Heat

While Glen Cove gets hit with temperatures as high as 101 degrees, the Glen Cove Senior Center continues to serve as a cooling station for the city. 

Carol Waldman, the center's executive director, said 12 people visited the facility Tuesday to take advantage of its cool temperatures and relax throughout the afternoon and she expects more for Wednesday.

The majority of visitors, city officials said, were senior citizens but some residents came with children. Some visitors said they decided to utilize the center because they did not have air conditioning in their homes while others came just to socialize. 

"One woman came in because she was alone and she was afraid to be alone in the heat," Waldman said.

The city utilized its SwiftReach emergency notification system Tuesday to notify residents that the center would be a cooling station. They also informed physicians at Glen Cove Hospital and placed signs throughout the community to help spread the word. 

Officials at the center are hoping to get Home Depot or Lowes to donate fans that they can give out to residents to help beat the heat. But some businesses in the city have already shown their generosity. Rita's on School Street donated icees to the center on Tuesday to give visitors a cold sweet treat.  

In the meantime, however, the center provides many indoor services to help keep adults and children busy until the summer scorcher dies down. 

While cooling off, Waldman explained, visitors can have cold drinks, read in the center's library area, mingle in its dining room, play games or watch TV. The center will add to its options on Wednesday night by showing a movie. 

The facility, city officials said, will remain open as a cooling center from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. until Thursday. For more information, call (516) 759-9610.