City of Austin issues heat warning, opens cooling centers

The National Weather Service issued a rare excessive heat warning until Sunday at 7 p.m.

TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) -- You may have gotten the alert on your phone: The city of Austin issued a heat warning Saturday and opened cooling centers as temperatures reach and surpass record territory. Highs will top 100, hitting 107 in some places in Central Texas.

The National Weather Service issued a rare excessive heat warning until Sunday at 7 p.m.

The city of Austin recommended drinking lots of water, taking breaks in the shade if you absolutely have to be outside and knowing where to go if you need to cool off.

Many people were choosing to do that at Barton Springs on Saturday including Aliyah Valli.

"It [the water] is very refreshing," Valli said. "It is burning up [outside]."

Stephanie Brown and Niels Paetow, Austinites, were also at Barton Springs because of the "hundred-plus degree weather."

"It's real nice, lot of people out here, loving the Austin vibes," Paetow said.

The city is operating cooling centers as a result of the high temperatures. Locations include many Austin Public Library branches, Austin Recreation Centers and Austin Senior Centers. Those centers will be available during normal hours and will not offer overnight shelter. Only service animals are allowed at those locations.

You can find KXAN's forecast here. You can find free and cheap things to do in Austin when it's hot here.