Beaufort beats the heat this weekend at Hunting Island Beach

What did you do to beat the extreme heat over the weekend in Beaufort?  Did you stay at home?  Put the boat in the river?  Throngs of folks headed out to try and cool off at Hunting Island Beach Saturday and Sunday, and with heat indexes taking the ‘feels-like’ temperature up to around 115+ degrees the water was quite a welcome spot to be.  The heat didn’t keep the sun-worshippers away as young and old, and canine too, ventured to Hunting Island to spend the day both Saturday and Sunday.  We didn’t witness much beach football, as the heat was too much for unnecessary running around, but there actually seemed to be just a few more sandbuckets, and toddler-hats bouncing around in the sand.  Sunscreen was thick, and several gratefully opted to stay under the shade of their beach umbrellas or pop-up beach tents.

With temperatures this high and the Beaufort humidity being its usual self, an Extreme Heat Advisory was issued for the entire Beaufort area over most of the weekend.  Beaufort reached an observed high temperature of 97 degrees on Sunday at 1:05pm.  Add the humidity to that, and it was quite hot and soupy at around 115 degrees in the afternoon on both days.

Consecutive days of excessive heat can have a cumulative effect on the human body.  Heat of this magnitude and duration can trigger heat-related illnesses such as heat exhaustion, or even heat stroke.  The combination of hot temperatures and high humidity will combine to create a situation in which heat illnesses are possible.  It’s in conditions like this that you should drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, and usually stay out of the sunshine.

But not in Beaufort.  Not for these folks, anyway.

“It seems as though we Beaufortonians are used to this extreme heat, and it doesn’t bother us as much as others”, said one beach-goer, Amanda, there with her 4 year-old son.  “Actually, it kind of lets us all know when summer is finally here, we love it”, she said.

Temperatures are expected to continue to reach the mid 90s for this entire week, with heat indexes reaching triple-digits across Beaufort.

Tips for when it’s THIS HOT:
Check on elderly relatives and neighbors;
NEVER leave children or pets unattended in a car, even with the windows rolled down.
Take extra precautions if you work or spend time outside.  When possible, reschedule strenuous activities to early morning or evening hours.
Know the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
Wear light weight and loose fitting clothing when possible, and drink plenty of water.
To reduce your risk during outdoor work, OSHA recommends scheduling frequent rest breaks in shaded or air conditioned environments.  Anyone overcome by heat should be moved to a cool and shaded location.

HEAT STROKE IS AN EMERGENCY.  Do CALL 911.