Seeking shelter from the heat
Texas has its smoldering July mornings, Alabama has its sweat-heavy summers, and Spokane and North Idaho have the 100-degree weather seen Thursday, which could be a point of pride for the region if it weren’t so grumpily hot.
On average, Spokane gets three-digit weather around July 23, making this unseasonably early for such heat.
The area had three 100-degree days last year, but they didn’t start until the end of July.
Thursday was the hottest July 5 since 1975, and residents and leftover Independence Day visitors went searching for air-conditioned escapes or large bodies of cold water.
“I told my friends I miss Texas, and they say I got what I asked for,” said Shannon Elson, 27, who now lives in a Spokane house equipped with only fans and no air conditioning.
“It’s 80 degrees in Texas, and it’s 85 degrees inside my house right now,” she said upon leaving the 71-degree Garland Theater where she attended a free morning film with her two daughters.
“We did this yesterday, too,” she said.
Manager Cody Sciara, 18, wasn’t surprised.
“A lot of people just come in and ask if we have air conditioning; they don’t even care what’s playing,” he said, a bit surprised the theater wasn’t packed for the morning show.
Many of the air-conditioned establishments were populated by confounded visitors who left home expecting breezy afternoons. “I thought I would get away from the heat, but it’s not true,” said Kirste Cowart, 30, a Missourian who was visiting her family in Spokane. Camped out at 71-degree Lilac Lanes bowling alley, she had just lost two games to her 7-year-old and was wondering what to do next. They had settled on bowling because her fiancé and father had two requirements: air conditioning and no shopping.
That wasn’t the case for Eric Lampkin, 39, who planned to wander through the 74-degree NorthTown Mall until he came up with a better idea. The Spokane resident said he’s stocked up; the fridge is full of water and cold drinks. “We are going to enjoy the weather inside,” he joked, before continuing his mall rambling. Several stores down, Sears sales associate Donna Edgar said they had received 10 to 15 calls about portable air conditioners by mid-morning, compared with two or three on a regular day.
Whether it was the T-Rex exhibit or the lowest temperature in the area, the Northwest Museum of Art and Culture drew some of the biggest crowds on this season’s hottest day yet. By midday, 169 visitors had walked through the 70-degree building, about 50 percent more than normal.
Jeanne Flahiff, 40, exhaled in loud relief as she walked into the museum. “We decided to do this before the pool,” she said, her two children running in front of her. “We did the park yesterday, and after that I said we need to be inside today,” said the pregnant Seattle resident.
Yesterday was 7 degrees lower. Fortunately for Flahiff, it’s supposed to drop 6 degrees today and remain in the upper 80s through the weekend.
Scott Mull planned to take full advantage of Thursday’s heat. Spatula in hand, the 13-year-old looked the part of summer vacationer. “It’s my second time grilling,” he said proudly, nudging three hot dogs on a small hibachi grill at Q’emiln Park in Post Falls. Water from the Spokane River still trickled off his black swimming trunks.
Mull’s mother, Kari Mull, 34, said she’s been coming to Q’emiln for 16 years from her home in Spokane. “It’s our favorite beach because it’s shallow so the kids can swim, there are lifeguards and it’s not a meat market like Coeur d’Alene Lake,” she said, reclining in a makeshift chair in the shade.
She checked on her son taking the “man-role” at his chosen position at the grill and looked around. There were still empty parking spaces in the lot and she said she was a bit surprised the beach wasn’t more crowded, considering the heat.
“They must be sleeping in because of the celebration yesterday,” she said. She watched her daughter shiver as she stepped from the water. “Not us. We set the alarm.”