2 cooling centers open in Fresno with COVID-19 protocols in place
Staff were prepared to hand out masks and check temperatures, and chairs were spaced at least 6 feet apart.
FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- To give people a break from the grueling heat, a couple of cooling centers opened in Fresno on Thursday.
Staff were prepared to hand out masks to those who didn't have one at Frank H. Ball Community Center in southwest Fresno.
Before people come inside, they must have their temperature checked.
"And then we actually have a couple of cooling tents outside... just in case. If people are coming in and we're screening the temperatures, they might be a little on the hot side so it gives them a chance to kind of cool down," said Mark Standriff of the city of Fresno.
The idea is to come in and cool off with as little interaction as possible.
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That's why the chairs are spaced so far apart.
The Ted C. Wills Center was also opened up to the public. It offered a comfortable spot to read a book.
The cooling centers haven't drawn a lot of people but the early opening helped the city try the new layout.
"It also gives an opportunity to look at how we do things in case we have to run this in case our 'shelter in place' orders from the state continue on into another heat wave," said Standriff.
Standriff said the cooling centers draw more people when Fresno deals with longer heat waves.
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