REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. - As days of dangerous heat is expected to begin across Delmarva, extreme heat means taking extra precautions on the beach, boardwalk or boat.
The risk of heat illness is quite common in the summer. There are several kinds of heat illness, from heat exhaustion to heat syncope, to heat stroke, the most dangerous of them all.
Emergency Medicine Physician at Bayhealth, Dr. Kelly Abbrescia, says when you have a heat stroke, "your body goes into multi-organ failure, liver failure, kidney failure, your brain doesn't function. That's very rare but very serious."
There are many signs of a heat stroke, but some include confusion, pale skin, and a drop in blood pressure. There's an old wives tale that says you quit sweating when you have a heat stroke, which Dr. Abbrescia says is not true.
"50% of patients with heat stroke continue to sweat. I've had patients who say 'I'm sweating, I don't have a heat stroke.' That's not true. Drink a lot of fluids, not just water, electrolyte solutions are good. If you feel like you're getting overheated, you need to get out of the heat. The best way to cool down, if you're having heat exhaustion or heat stroke, is immersion in icy water," says Dr. Abbrescia.
When heading to the beach, Captain Kent Buckson of Rehoboth Beach Patrol, says to eat, stay hydrated, and use the ocean to cool off.
"This weekend we anticipate a very hot Saturday and Sunday, I can see we are going to have some heat related issues ... we could have multiple people have issues all day long, fortunately we have medics on duty," says Capt. Buckson.
Lifeguards are also trained to spot heat illnesses in people.
At Brandywine Valley SPCA, they say if you're feeling hot, your pet is most likely feeling it too.
"You want to be aware of the temperature of the pavement, so put your hand on the pavement. If it's too hot for your hand, it's too hot for the paws, the pads of their paws can blister," says Carla DiGiacomo, Community Engagement Manager for BVSPCA.
Make sure your dog has ample shade and access to water at all times.
"Look for signs of heat stroke so if a dog has excessive rapid panting, the color of their tongue becomes a deep red, you may see some salivating, some vomiting," says DiGiacomo.
She adds never to submerge a dog in cool water, but to apply cool water to them, and give them small drinks of water. The next step is to take them to a veterinarian.
As we are still battling a pandemic, masks are going to make you feel hotter, "but it's not going to increase your body temperature or anything like that," says Dr. Abbrescia.
Dr. Abbrescia rECOMMENDS GOING TO AN AREA AWAY FROM PEOPLE WHEN REMOVING YOUR MASK, TO TAKE A BREAK FROM THE HEAT
