Houston FIFA Fan Fest adds cooling stations amid dangerous heat
Cooling stations, misting tents and on-site medics were tested as more than 30,000 fans packed Houston’s EaDo FIFA Fan Fest in triple-digit heat.
At Houston’s FIFA Fan Festival at 2301 Dallas St. in East Downtown, crowds pushed past 30,000 people and emergency crews handled 110 medical incidents on opening day. Four people were transported to a hospital for heat-related concerns, while 85 others were treated at the on-site cooling center and returned to the festivities.
The fan zone was built as a free, 34-day event running June 11 through July 19, with no operations on rest days July 8, 12, 13, 16 and 17. The festival opens 90 minutes before the first match of the day, and Houston host city planners paired that schedule with hydration stations, cooling areas, sunscreen stations, misting stations and nearby first responders as temperatures and humidity climbed across Harris County.
Afternoon heat index values were forecast around 99 to 107 degrees by the National Weather Service Houston/Galveston, and event-day heat index values were expected to reach 102 to 109 degrees, according to KHOU. Fans moved between shade, refill stations and cooling spaces.
The host committee planned four air-conditioned spaces, free water stations, four cooling stations, fans, misting machines, cooling towels and a full medical clinic for the 39-day tournament. NRG Stadium’s retractable roof was set to stay closed for Houston’s seven World Cup matches to help keep the stadium near 72 degrees.
The fan festival’s mist system also changed after the first day. Crews lowered the mist nozzles by about two feet to improve coverage, and the system’s mist is not air conditioning and depends heavily on air temperature and humidity.
Houston designated EADO and East End as one of four activated Clean Zones for the World Cup, alongside the Central Business District, Galleria and NRG Park. Sugar Land also announced free World Cup viewing parties at Sugar Land Town Square beginning March 19.
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