MEDFORD, Ore. – As temperatures heat up this weekend, cooling shelters could be opening up soon.
Right now, Medford, Grants Pass, and Ashland have not indicated whether an emergency shelter will be opening.
However, Grants Pass said the city can declare for a severe event for hot weather at a forecasted temperature of 100 degrees.
In Medford, the city said 102 degree is it’s threshold.
ACCESS, who runs the shelter for Medford, said it’s important to have a shelter during extreme heat.
“It is critically important to have a cooling shelter, especially as the temperatures are getting more and more high as time goes by,” ACCESS support services director Melanie Doshier said. “Extreme heat can be equally as dangerous to lives as extreme cold.”
The cooling shelter will be located on 322 W 6th Street, where the old ‘Kelly Shelter’ is at.
Access is also inviting the community to an open house at the shelter on July 29 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m..
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