Quebecers urged to stay cool in heat wave

Public health officials in Quebec were asking people to be vigilant as the first major heat wave of the summer went through its second day on Tuesday.

For the second day in a row, temperatures in southwestern Quebec were over 30 degrees.

Environment Canada issued heat and humidity warnings for the Montreal region, where the UV index was estimated at 11 on Tuesday. Such an extreme sunburn-danger reading is "very rare in Canada" and more typical of the tropics or southern United States, according to Environment Canada. A reading of three to five is considered moderate.

Quebec's chief public health officer, Dr. Alain Poirier, encouraged people to stay hydrated and take it slow: "If it is humid outside, there is not much you can do except stop and reduce your own production of heat — that is, lower your activity."

In particular, Poirier warned that children under four years of age, the elderly and people with chronic illnesses are at risk of succumbing to the heat. Symptoms of heatstroke include dizziness and confusion, he said.

"When you're living alone and you're older, even if you have a mental illness, if you have other disease, the way you will feel dehydration is not the same. So I should say don't hesitate to visit your neighbour and ask if they need any help."

So far, Poirier said hospital emergency rooms have not reported an increase in visits due to the heat. He added that people do get used to hot weather. "The first heat waves are always most difficult," he said.

Heat wave plans in place

Poirier said each region would adapt to the situation as necessary. In Quebec City, officials said swimming pools and water parks would extend their hours to give people places to cool off.

If the heat wave persists, the city of Montreal could open air-conditioned centres to "prevent unfortunate health events from happening," said Dr. Norman King, an epidemiologist with the public health department.

That would be considered following three straight days of temperatures averaging more than 33 C during the daytime and not dropping below 20 degrees at night, officials said.

Employees and employers must take steps to avoid heatstroke, said officials with Quebec's workplace health and safety board. Employers should ensure a regular rotation of workers, reduce their workload if necessary and provide additional rest periods, said the CSST's director of prevention and inspection, Normand Paulin. He said 63 accidents due to heat exposure were reported last year.

Patients endure the heat

At the Royal Victoria Hospital, some patients had to bear the heat without air conditioning. The hospital has cooling systems in some units but not all, because of voltage limits in the century-old building, explained Francine Martin, head nurse of the high-risk pregnancy wing.

Patients sometimes try to bring in portable AC units, but "we cannot have extra ones, because it affects the whole hospital," Martin said, admitting that "some families complain."

The hospital uses fans to create air currents in the wards, and every patient has access to ice water, she said.

Hydro-Québec says it is able to handle the spike in electricity demand caused by the heat wave.