How to stay cool during B.C.'s heatwave: Health Canada
Vancouver Island residents are being warned of an upcoming heatwave that could push temperatures into the high 30s this weekend.
With temperatures already on the rise, Health Canada has several tips on how to stay cool during the record-breaking forecasted heatwave.
Health Canada recommends:
- Drinking lots of cool liquids, particularly water
- Wearing loose, light-coloured clothing and wide-brimmed hats
- Apply plenty of sunscreen
- Avoiding strenuous outdoor activity, and taking frequent breaks in cool areas
- Monitoring yourself and others for signs of heat-related illness, including: dizziness or fainting, nausea or vomiting, headache, rapid breathing and heartbeat, extreme thirst, decreased urination with unusually dark tallow urine, and changes of behaviour in children such as sleepiness or temper tantrums.
- If you or someone you know is experiencing any of the above symptoms while in extreme heat, Health Canada recommends calling 911 immediately. While waiting for help, it's recommended that you move into a cool place, apply cold water to large areas of skin or clothing of possible, and fan the individual.
To prepare your home for heat, Health Canada suggest making sure that devices such as fans, ceiling fans and air conditions are working. If it is safe to do so, you can also leave your windows open overnight to let cooler air in.
Health Canada also recommends that you have friends, neighbours, or family members check in on you in case you need help.
People who are most at risk of suffering from a heat-related illnesses are people aged 65 or older, infants and children, and people who perform physical work outdoors, according to the health agency.
"Give your body time to recover after being in the heat," says Health Canada. Meanwhile WorkSafeBC is reminding employers to make sure there are procedures in place at work sites during hot conditions.
"In the last three years, there have been almost 100 accepted claims for work-related injuries caused by heat stress — and these are preventable injuries," said Barry Nakahara, senior manager of prevention field services at WorkSafeBC in a statement Wednesday.
"We’re reminding workers and employers to take steps to prevent heat stress. This includes reducing exposure to the sun wherever possible, drinking lots of water, wearing the right clothes, and taking rest breaks in cool, well-ventilated areas," he said.
Heat warnings are in effect for most of B.C.'s coast, including Greater Victoria to Nanaimo, Courtenay, Campbell River, the southern Gulf Islands and inland Vancouver Island communities.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.