Camps take precautions with record heat - 13 WTHR Indianapolis

With dangerously high temperatures forecast this week, it's important to take steps to be safe in the heat.

At the Marion County Fair, fans are on high in the barns and misters are on order to keep visitors comfortable.

"We currently have misters out here and we're actually having a few more delivered, so we are prepared for the upcoming days," said Fair Board President Cathy Clark.

The pool will be a very popular place the next few days. At the Jordan YMCA, day campers will be spending a lot of time around water, but all around town, plans are being made to keep everyone - and everything - cool.

"We play lots of games and we play 'Where's my counselor?'," said seven-year-old camper Sophia Ready.

But when temps rise into the triple digits, plans will be changing.

"We're making sure we're taking frequent water breaks, as often as necessary, sun block breaks every two hours and looking for signs of heat exhaustion, so we're making sure the kids are not overheated," said Brian Shelley, associate program director at Jordan YMCA.

Shelley says for the next few days, campers will take indoor breaks every half hour and counselors will keep a close eye on the kids, making sure they're not having too much fun in the sun.

"All of our counselors go through first aid and CPR training, so they're trained to look for the signs of heat exhaustion and they're capable of dealing with it if that situation ever occurred," he said.

Ask any of the campers and they'll tell you the best place to be is the pool and when the heat is this high, it's actually one of the safest.

"We do a lot more water play, so when the kids are outside, we make sure they are doing water play, instead of just running around, playing games, so they'll get the hoses out, the sprinklers out and have a lot of fun," Shelley said.

Ready says she doesn't really mind the heat, but she would rather have snow than sweat.

"I like winter, because I get to sit on Santa's lap," she said.

The Y says if a child becomes overheated, counselors will immediately take them inside to cool off and call mom and dad to let them know what is going on. Campers are being told to wear light-colored clothing and pack light meals for lunch, including fruits and, of course, plenty of water.