It’s Heat Awareness Week in Tucson.
Mayor Regina Romero joined county leaders and public health officials to announce the designation Monday.
Romero said Tucson is one of the fastest-warming cities in the U.S.
“We just want to remind people that the heat season is coming and it could be deadly for people if we’re not aware, if we don’t take care of ourselves and take care of others including our neighbors,” she said.
Romero said last year, the city worked with nonprofits to distribute heat relief kits to vulnerable populations like senior citizens and those experiencing homelessness.
“We distributed 900 relief kits last summer, we’re hoping to double the heat relief kits,” she said.
Tucson and Pima County have both established heat regulations for employees and contractors. Romero said they’ve also established things like public cooling centers and GIS heat mapping tools.
The city was awarded roughly $20 million in federal funding to build greenways to cool down hot roadways and retrofit homes with energy efficient systems. But the Trump administration pulled the funding earlier this year.
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