Keeping cool is a challenge as many public pools cut hours
By Courtney Cole, WBZ-TV
CHARLESTOWN - There's a heat emergency in effect across Boston through at least Thursday – and now people of all ages are trying to find the best way to keep cool.
One of the easiest ways to do that is usually at your neighborhood pool. That's proving to be more challenging in some parts of town.
At the Boston Center for Youth & Families Mirabella Pool in the North End, Captain Richard Spence and his 6½-year-old son Harley thought they'd go for a swim today. The only problem is, some of them, like the Mirabella Pool, are not open, even when temperatures hit 90 degrees.
"We had been talking about this for days! And everything was pool, pool, pool! It didn't matter what we were doing ... Dinosaur Museum, everything else was, 'Which day are we going to the pool?'" Spence said.
He said this made them think about taking a trip to the pool at the BCYF Charlestown Community Center.
"He's going back to Miami tomorrow, so this was our last day to do it. And, unfortunately, it's not open, so here we are," Spence said.
Last month, the city closed the Clougherty Pool because of "unsafe conditions." Mirabella is one of the pools the city has asked neighbors to go to as a result of the closure.
"I think we're just making the best of what we have," Tia Bruno, a mother of three said. "It's definitely not easy - keeping three kids occupied in the summer during a heat wave."
Now residents like Bruno say they are only left with memories of what it was like in the good ol' days.
"Growing up during the heat wave, this pool was open! Morning, noon, night!" exclaimed Bruno.
To help keep people cool, the City of Boston also has cooling centers. They are open at 12 of the Boston Centers for Youth and Families (BCYF) centers Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
