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Portland temperatures abruptly hit 100 degrees on Tuesday afternoon, as Multnomah County officials opened a daytime cooling shelter in Bud Clark Commons and urged residents to seek relief from the conditions in public, air-conditioned spaces.
Shortly after 5 pm today, the temperature at Portland International Airport was recorded at 100 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.
Temperatures could crest to 100 degrees again Wednesday, the National Weather Service says. The heat spike surprised forecasters. “Overnight lows were higher than forecast with temperatures reported around 65 degrees in urban areas,” the NWS Portland office wrote. “This created a launching pad for today`s highs where temperatures are in the widespread 90s inland and in the mid- to upper 50s along the coast. Even along the Cascades, some sites are reporting highs of 90–91 degrees as of 2 pm.”
The conditions have led county officials to initiate emergency measures. Bud Clark Commons will remain open as a cooling shelter until 9 pm. (It wasn’t immediately clear if it would open again Wednesday morning.) TriMet services will not turn anyone away who is going to a cooling center and cannot otherwise pay the fare until 10 pm on Tuesday. The county has also partnered with the county’s Homeless Services Department to increase cooling supplies and aid during the heat wave.
“This additional dedicated cooling center is just one part of the county’s work to offer relief, joining over 80 cooling spaces already open, including libraries, community centers, misting stations, fountains, pools, splash pads and malls,” county spokeswoman Sarah Dean said in a statement.
To make matters worse, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality warned Tuesday that smoke from wildfires in Central Oregon is creeping into the Portland metro area.
To prevent air quality from degrading further, the County Health Department has placed a temporary ban on wood burning and open burning until the conditions improve. Additionally, the county is advising residents to look to spaces like libraries and community centers for relief from the heat.
“Check in on your neighbors, friends and relatives and make a plan for visiting a cool location, even for a few hours,” Dean said.
