SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Come Tuesday, the first major heat wave of the season will hit.
"I sweat thinking about it, but it's going to happen. Up here in Northern California, it's bound to happen," said Robyn Wheaton, a mother who is already planning to keep herself and her daughter cool.
With triple digits in the forecast, it's hard for anyone to escape.
The most vulnerable are the homeless community, seniors and people with health conditions.
Sacramento County is preparing by activating cooling centers across the county and in conjunction with several cities.
"2 to 4 P.M. is when the temperatures really start to hit that hundred-degree weather, so run errands in the morning or wait until after dark. If you have pets, walk them in the morning or wait until after dark. Make sure your kids aren't outside playing in the real heat of the day," said Janna Haynes, public information officer for Sacramento County.
The heat can also be very dangerous for pets that can't handle heat the way people do, so leaving a pet in the car can turn out tragic.
"Another danger is hot surfaces, so black top can get extremely hot, hot enough to burn your pet's paws. Concrete, like light-color concrete, is a little bit cooler but can still be very hot. Grass is usually pretty safe, so if you're gonna walk your pet, keep them in the shade," said Ryan Hinderman, communications manager for Sacramento's Front Street Animal Shelter.
With warmer temperatures, lower humidity and possible high winds, Cal Fire said the chances of new fires starting up are highly likely.
But keep in mind, that most fires are caused by human factors.
"We ask folks to mow their grass because of defensible space to keep the weeds down. But what some folks don't know is try to do it before 10:30 a.m. in the morning. Don't do it when it's warm or hot outside because now a lawn mower blade can strike a rock and cause a fire," said Robert Carvalho, a battalion chief with Cal Fire.
Haynes said the heat coming our way is nothing to take lightly.
"One of the things people need to remember is this is our very first heat wave of the year. Our bodies have not acclimated to this heat, so something to keep in mind is that just because you feel like you're not necessarily overheated or sweaty doesn't mean that your body isn't hotter than it should be," said Haynes.
Sacramento County's advice is to run your AC early in the morning when it's not having to work so hard.
Shut your windows and close your blinds. And keep your home as dark as possible to keep it cool. But if you can't there will be plenty of cooling centers open if you want to escape the heat.
You can find locations by either calling 211 or by visiting 211sacramento.org.
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