Seven dead in Spokane heat wave

Spokane is one of many cities that have opened “cooling centers” (Andrew Buncombe)

Pete & Belle’s Ice Cream Shop has 48 flavors.

According to Carey Pilalas, the most refreshing flavors include lemon poppy seeds and rainbow sorbet.

But for some customers, on hot days like these, the efficient air conditioning of the shop is just as much of a draw as the admittedly delicious ice cream.

“I bought the tropical hat I’m wearing 10 years ago,” says a man named Karl, who doesn’t want to be photographed. “When I leave work, I pour water on my hat and then I come here.”

In this 220,000-inhabitant city in east Washington, about 300 miles from Seattle, residents have done everything they can to stay cool over the past few days as the community among many in the Pacific Northwest has suffered record temperatures.

Spokane has always had hotter summers than Seattle and its winters much more bitter. But on Tuesday the temperature hit 109 F (42.2 C), the highest temperature ever recorded there. The next day it had dropped a few degrees and by Thursday it had fallen to the relatively moderate 100F.

“Yesterday was crazy,” says JT Washington, who goes to a mini-splash pool with his partner Jami Winehouse and their kids. “Even the water in the pool was hot.”

While cities like Portland and Seattle, as well as locations north of the border in British Columbia, Canada have made headlines for their appalling temperatures and the reported deaths of hundreds of people, Spokane has been overlooked in some ways.

But officials here announced Thursday evening that they too had identified seven fatalities that they believed were due to the record temperatures.

“There are currently seven deaths where circumstances suggest they may be heat-related, although the autopsy results are not yet available for confirmation,” the Spokane County’s medical examiner wrote on its website.

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Two of the victims had been identified as Robert Hunt, 68, who was found dead in his apartment by rescue workers on Wednesday. A second man, Andre Pharr, 36, was found dead in his apartment across the hall.

To create a haven, the city has set up a number of “cooling centers” where residents can sit in an air-conditioned room and have free drinking water, sunscreen, and even electrolyte drinks.

City spokesman Brian Coddington told The Independent that there is enough space for up to 1,000 people. On average, he said, they took in around 75 people a day. They will keep the centers open until Sunday after extending the high heat warning.

“We monitored the weather reports and wanted to react quickly,” he says. “We were actually informed by the plan we used with the forest fires in September. That helped us this time. “

A cooling center has been set up in the Looff Carrousel building, which also includes a famous carousel. In a neighboring hall, Steve Kinn, a volunteer, greets the arriving people and points out the water, toilets and sockets.

“This is the hottest thing I’ve seen here,” says Kinn, 64, a retired attorney. “Usually we have a hot day or two in July or August, but not like that.”

The winters in the region used to be longer and harsher. In essence, he’s seen climate change in his life and he worries him.

“I think it’s climate change. There may be other factors contributing to this particular heat wave, but climate change is contributing to it. “

One of the few who take a break in the hall is the 23-year-old Ronald Baumgarden. Baumgarden says he is homeless as he was forced out of his foster home when he was 18. He says he has participated in various programs and authorities will provide him with an apartment in the city over the next month.

Baumgarden also believes that climate change is responsible for the heat wave like it has never seen it before.

Martin Fimon, 59, says he’s on his way to Minnesota. He has worked on sustainable farms in Hawaii for some time and plans to spend a month in Spokane before traveling to the Midwest. He sleeps in a tent.

How does he manage to keep a cool head in the heat?

Jen Menzies stayed cool by going to work (Andrew Buncombe)

“I watch the birds and the animals and do what they do,” he says. “I get up early and when it gets hot I just squat down.”

Jen Menzies leaves work near the cooling center. She works in a toy store with air conditioning.

How did she stay cool the day before? “I stayed cool by going to work,” says the 45-year-old. “The shop has air conditioning, but we don’t have it at home.”

Like many cities in the heat-stricken region, Spokane has seen repeated blackouts to meet demand, even though many residents, like many cities in the Pacific Northwest, do not have air conditioning in their homes.

Avista Utilities said around 9,000 Spokane customers lost power on Monday. “We’re trying to limit the downtime to an hour per customer,” Heather Rosentrater, an Avista vice president of power supplies, told the Associated Press.

At the same time, many of the city’s hotels, especially those with pools, are full, and people are checking in to escape the heat.

While the Pete & Belle ice cream parlor was open during the heat wave, not all of these stores in town were so lucky.

Doyle’s Ice Cream Parlor has served the West Central neighborhood of Spokane since 1940.

But like a number of older, more traditional Seattle shops, it was closed this week. Dominic Palmides, who lives near the store, says there’s nothing like it in town.

Still, he sympathized with those who decided not to open a store. “It was 110F, 111F – monstrous,” he says.

There is a cone on the shop’s Facebook page that says “It’s hot”.

“We closed this week because of the extreme heat,” said a post.

“If the cone on display says it’s too hot, it’s too hot! Our freezers are having a hard time keeping up. Stay safe and stay hydrated Spokane. It will pass. “

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