St. Louis\u2019 concrete-heavy neighborhoods are holding onto heat long after sunset, and it\u2019s hitting communities still reeling from tornadoes the hardest.<\/p>\n
ST. LOUIS \u2014 As St. Louis braces for several days of triple-digit heat<\/a>, residents in parts of the city are feeling the temperature rise more intensely than others, especially in neighborhoods still recovering from recent tornadoes.<\/p>\n In north St. Louis, longtime resident Terry Miller is doing what he can to stay cool.<\/p>\n \u201cThis heat might get so bad that you can fry an egg off the concrete,\u201d Miller said from the porch of his home, where he\u2019s lived since 1967.<\/p>\n He\u2019s lucky, he said, to have a bit of shade and a working air conditioner for now.<\/p>\n \u201cGod helped me with an air conditioner, and I’m running it cause I don’t want to die in the heat,\u201d Miller said. \u201cLuckily, I got a little air conditioner, but I need a fresh one.\u201d<\/p>\n But not everyone in his neighborhood has a porch to sit on or a reliable way to cool off. And that\u2019s where the urban heat island effect comes in, a phenomenon making areas like north St. Louis even hotter than their suburban counterparts.<\/p>\n Over the weekend, people used trees and umbrellas for shade.<\/p>\n Urban heat islands form when buildings and pavement absorb heat during the day and release it slowly at night, keeping city temperatures several degrees hotter than surrounding areas.”<\/p>\n Marshall Fahler, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in St. Louis, said the city\u2019s infrastructure plays a major role.<\/p>\n \u201cThe urban area has more concrete, more asphalt, which is able to both heat up better than the surrounding areas as well as retain the heat at night,\u201d Fahler explained.<\/p>\n That retained heat can lead to significant overnight temperature differences.<\/p>\n \u201cThe minimum temperatures at night in the city average about three degrees warmer,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s when you really see the urban heat island light up.\u201d<\/p>\n What\u2019s more, many neighborhoods in north St. Louis are still recovering from tornado damage, leaving some residents with damaged homes or limited access to power and cooling. Blue tarps are still visible on roofs.<\/p>\n \u201cOne of the vulnerabilities that\u2019s unique this year is definitely north city … a lot of people don\u2019t have adequate ways to escape the heat,\u201d Fahler said.<\/p>\n A sprinkler system hooked to a fire hydrant on one corner created temporary cooling spots on the neighborhood sidewalk.<\/p>\n
With dangerous heat levels forecasted through the week, officials are encouraging residents to take advantage of public cooling centers.\u00a0<\/p>\n The City of St. Louis, along with local nonprofits and emergency management teams, has opened several locations\u00a0<\/a>for those seeking shelter from the heat.<\/p>\n
\nCooling centers open across St. Louis <\/p>\n