Edmontonians are doing what they can to beat the heat on what ended up being a record-setting day.
The city is now in the middle of a heat wave with temperatures soaring into the mid to high 30s.
Outdoor pools across the city were busy throughout the day, with many lining up before the gates opened Monday.
Dozens of people were lined up before Queen Elizabeth Pool Monday morning.
“We are reaching capacity most days,” Ron Nichol, a pool operation’s supervisor said.
Pool supervisors said since the heat wave started over the weekend, all of the city's outdoor pools have been filled to capacity.
As a result, anyone looking to go for a dip later in the day may have a hard time getting in, as officials stop allowing people into the water when the facility reaches capacity.
“So the lifeguards are doing headcounts in the water from time to time,” Nichol said. “Once we get to about 250 [people] we send a message to the cashiers to just stop.”
Nichol also said pool hours have not been extended to accommodate the weather.
“We can, but our typical experience has been, people aren’t expecting us to do that, and what happens is the folks who are already there just stay longer, which ends up costing us a lot more.”
It’s a policy that didn’t sit well with a city councillor.
“We only get so many days like this, so we want to enjoy it,” Councillor Kerry Diotte said. “I’m hoping there’s a way to extend those hours on a day like this.”
A listing of the hours for all five of the city’s outdoor pools can be found online.
The heat is becoming an issue for the less fortunate as well – and the Hope Mission is putting out the call for donations of bottled water to meet the need.
Donations can be dropped off at the Hope Mission Centre, located at 9908 106 Avenue, between the hours of 9 am to 5 pm all week.
With files from Ashley Molnar
