An excessive heat warning will be in effect for Hopkinsville and surrounding areas of Western Kentucky and Middle Tennessee from noon Thursday until 7 p.m. Sunday, the National Weather Service reported.
Afternoon heat index values will top 105 degrees and could reach 110 each day Thursday through Sunday.
“The combination of hot temperatures and high humidity will combine to create a dangerous situation in which heat illnesses are likely,” the NWS Paducah office warned. “Drink plenty of fluids. Stay in an air-conditioned room. Stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors.”
Excessive heat puts children, older people, outdoor workers and people without air conditioning at risk.
“The effects will worsen with each successive day of the heat and humidity. Also, car interiors can reach lethal temperatures in a matter of minutes,” the NWS report states.
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People who are homeless or don’t have air conditioning at home can go to The Salvation Army office, at 304 E. Seventh St., during regular business hours.
“Our lobby is open for anyone who wants to come, and we have bottled water,” said Alisa Barton, director of social services.
The office lobby is open 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays. It is closed on weekends.
The shelter is on Seventh Street at Liberty. Anyone wanting to stay overnight should arrive at 5:30 p.m.
However, it is unlikely there will be space for more than a few extra people during the heat wave. The shelter, which has 30 beds, is near capacity, said Barton.
The Hopkinsville shelter is the only overnight option for homeless people in the nine-county Pennyrile region, said Barton.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
