Community Environment

No Summer Sounds concert, Farmer’s Market this week due to heat

The National Weather Service issued a heat advisory for Gig Harbor and the wider Western Washington region for the week of July 25.

The worst of the heat is expected to start Tuesday and last through Friday evening. The weather service forecasts temperatures to reach the mid-90s.

Some things to know about this week’s heat wave:

• There will be no Waterfront Farmer’s Market on Thursday due to the heat.
• The Tuesday Summer Sounds concert has been canceled. The Paperboys will perform on Sept. 6 instead.
• Chapel Hill Church, 7700 Skansie Ave. NW, will open its lobby as a cooling center during the hottest hours. The lobby will be open from 12:30 to 4:40 p.m. Monday, July 25; and from 12:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, July 26-28. Enter Door D to gain access to the lobby.
• The Key Peninsula Civic Center, 17010 S Vaughn Road NW, will be open as a cooling center from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily through Friday.
• Pierce County libraries also are designated cooling centers. The Gig Harbor library is at 4424 Point Fosdick Drive.
• Find a full list of Pierce County cooling centers on the county’s website.
• Pierce Transit will offer free bus rides and Shuttle Paratransit rides to people going to cooling centers through Friday. Just tell the bus driver you need a ride to the cooling center. Paratransit customers can call 253-581-8000.
• For information about other shelter locations or to access human services in your area, dial 211 during business hours or visit wa211.org anytime.
• Some city of Gig Harbor services will adjust hours to limit workers’ exposure to the hottest part of the day. Murrey’s Disposal will begin all collection routes an hour early all week. Garbage trucks could be in neighborhoods as early as 6 a.m., according to information posted on the city’s Facebook page. City Public Works, Engineering and Wastewater Treatment Plant staff will work adjusted schedules.
• The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department posted some helpful tips for staying cool. Read them here.

Kayakers paddle in Gig Harbor recently. Temperatures the week of July 25 are expected to soar into the mid-90s. Larry Steagall