CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Several cooling centers will be open in the Charleston area to help residents deal with the excessive heat.
“It’s just really a dangerous heat for anybody that has to be out in it,” Kanawha Valley Collective Executive Director Traci Strickland said.
Strickland said the centers aren’t just for the homeless but they’re for anyone who needs to get cool.
“These places are open for anybody that needs somewhere cool,” she said. “If your air conditioning goes out and you need someplace cool. It’s really a no questions asked thing.”
Strickland said Kanawha Valley Collective and the Charleston CARE team will also be giving out water and popsicles to residents working outside or even standing in the heat waiting for the bus.
The agencies offering the cooling centers will reevaluate at the end of the week, Strickland said.
The shelters and their hours:
Bream SHOP
319 Washington St West, Charleston,
Operating Hours: 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Centralized Assessment Office
1015 Smith Street, Charleston, WV
Operating Hours: 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM
The following cooling centers will be operational on Monday, July 17th, Tuesday, July 18th, and Friday, July 21st.
Kanawha City Community Center*
3511 Venable Avenue, Charleston, WV
Operating Hours: 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM
Manna Meal
1105 Quarrier Street, Charleston, WV
Operating Hours: 7:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center*
314 Donnally Street, Charleston, WV Operating Hours: 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM
North Charleston Community Center*
2009 7th Avenue, Charleston, WV
Operating Hours: 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM
Roosevelt Community Center*
502 Ruffner Avenue, Charleston, WV
Operating Hours: 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM
*City of Charleston offices/buildings will be closed Wednesday and Thursday of this week in observance of the holidays.