Keeping Their COOL: Our Staff Response to Epic Heat Keeps Our Communities Safe
In response to last week’s Code Red emergency, and future extreme heat expected this summer, NYC Health + Hospitals, in partnership with city agencies, has launched the appropriately named Cooling Outreach On-Location (COOL) initiative.
Through the hottest days of the blistering heat wave, 21 COOL mobile outreach teams were on the streets across the five boroughs to help vulnerable New Yorkers by providing critical cooling resources, including clinical assessments, access to air-conditioning, hydration, electrolytes, cooling towels, sunscreen, food, and transportation to city cooling centers.
From sun-scorched sidewalks to sweltering apartments, our teams went wherever people were in need, reaching unsheltered New Yorkers unable to escape the heat and older adults isolated at home.
“The COOL program is an exciting opportunity to take what we’ve learned from the winter WARM units and bring essential cooling resources directly to New Yorkers who need it most. Our teams on the ground have worked hard to build trusted relationships that will be vital — and potentially lifesaving — as the heat of the summer continues. How cool is that?”Maayan Jaffe
Director, Policy and Planning for Critical Operations and Response Unit
In addition to mobile outreach, all 11 of our hospitals opened dedicated cooling centers to offer shelter to people who need it.
Here are some details about our cooling centers:
Q: Where are they located?
A: Our cooling centers are generally located in lobbies or other public-facing areas near the main entrance of our hospitals. These locations are chosen for their accessibility and to avoid crowding in hospital areas where patients are receiving or waiting to receive care.
Q: What are the cooling centers’ hours of operation? Are they open all night?
A: No, they are generally open from 9 am to 9 pm during the citywide Code Red emergency.
Q: What is the capacity of each cooling center?
A: Each NYC Health + Hospitals cooling center is designed to provide relief to at least 30 to 40 people at a time.
Q: Will we turn people away if a site reaches capacity?
A: No. No one will be turned away, and additional space will be made available as necessary.
Q: Will people need ID to get inside a cooling center?
A: No. Our cooling centers are open to anyone seeking relief from the heat, and people are not required to present identification to receive services.
As always, our goal is to reduce barriers to care, not create them.
“When a heat emergency strikes, our cooling centers become community lifelines — and last week, that’s exactly what they were,” said Syra Madad, Assistant Vice President of the Office of Biopreparedness and Emergency Management. “Our cooling centers ensure that any New Yorker who needs a safe, cool place to be can walk through our doors and find one.”