Heat advisory issued for Eugene, Lane County as temperatures climb

A heat advisory covered Eugene and much of Lane County from June 22 at 11 a.m. to June 23 at 11 p.m., with daytime highs expected to reach 92 to 100 degrees and only limited overnight relief. The National Weather Service forecast moderate to locally major HeatRisk.

The neighborhoods most exposed to the heat were the ones with the least tree cover. Eugene’s tree canopy map shows Bethel at 9%, River Road & Santa Clara at 19%, downtown at 22% and Southeast Eugene at 50%, a spread that leaves western and central parts of the city with far less shade to blunt afternoon temperatures. Lane County and Oregon health officials flag older adults, young children, people with chronic illness, low-income households, outdoor workers and people without effective cooling as the groups most likely to suffer heat illness, and Oregon OSHA rules require water, rest, shade and emergency planning for workers as the heat index rises.

The Downtown Library at 100 W. 10th Ave. is open Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Friday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Petersen Barn Community Center at 870 Berntzen Road is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sheldon Branch Library at 1566 Coburg Road; Sheldon Community Center at 2445 Willakenzie Road; and the St. Vincent de Paul Eugene Service Station at 456 Highway 99 N is open seven days a week from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Libraries, community centers, shopping centers and parks with splash pads are also places to cool down.

Riders heading to a designated cooling space would not be charged fare if they told the operator where they were going, and people can dial 211 or 866-698-6155, or text a ZIP code to 898211, to find nearby help. For low-income and homeless adults without minor children, the Eugene Service Station also offered indoor, climate-controlled seating, showers, meals, laundry and other day services on Highway 99 N.

Eugene hit 97 degrees on June 14, breaking the old June 14 record of 92 set in 1914, after an earlier push into the 90s earlier in the month. The Portland weather office placed southeastern Lane County in extreme drought, eastern Lane in severe drought, central Lane in moderate drought and western Lane in abnormally dry conditions.