40% of NYC Cooling Centers closed for holiday as city braces for heat wave

NEW YORK (PIX11) -- More than 200 of New York City's Cooling Centers will be closed Wednesday in observance of Juneteenth.

According to the city's website, 239 of the 555 cooling centers citywide will be closed for the day, including 179 libraries.

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander said that 41% of the cooling centers are unavailable on several hot days. Lander told PIX11 News the city should have emergency contracts to pay to keep the cooling centers open on holidays and weekends when it is hot.

"What we're going to need in the era of the climate crisis is to have a more adaptative capacity to be able to open on holidays or weekends when the temperature rises," Lander said.

"Most cities operate a few dozen cooling centers at best, and while there's now a National Weather Service heat advisory in place for tomorrow, we still have hundreds of cooling centers open across the city (plus thousands of other cool options) and plenty of other resources to beat the heat at nyc.gov/beattheheat," New York City Emergency Management Commissioner Zach Iscol said Tuesday night.

You can also request a spray cap for a fire hydrant in your neighborhood.

FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh told PIX11 News that all you need is an ID to request one at your local firehouse. The FDNY will then decide which hydrants can be turned on, and they will turn it on for you with the spray cap installed.