Eryka Cordova had not been to Centennial Beach since she was 8 years old.
It was her day off Monday and with many of the pools around her in the Sycamore area closed for construction, the 22-year-old decided to make the hour-long trek to Naperville in an attempt to beat the heat.
“I was like, ‘I swear I remember this pool that was this beach,’ and it was still here,” she said, accompanied by her partner, Matthew Sharp, 23.
As the pair left the limestone quarry-turned-public swimming pool to explore downtown Naperville, they said they were eager to come back for another visit.
They were not alone. Dozens of people poured into Centennial Beach Monday, lying under the umbrellas and trees for shade, splashing around in the water and playing games of volleyball.
It looked like any other summer day in Naperville other than for the dangerously high temperatures blanketing the area and pushing many people to find a little respite.
The National Weather Service issued an extreme heat warning for the Chicago area this week, with the advisory expected to remain in place until midnight Thursday, National Weather Service Meteorologist Ricky Castro said Tuesday.
“We’re kind of looking at just four days of near 100, 105 (degrees), maybe a little higher in some spots,” Castro said, noting that overnight temperatures are expected to be in the 70s to 80s.
After a nearly two-week stretch of cooler temperatures, many people need to acclimate to the hotter temperatures, which can make the weather feel even more brutal, he said.
“Given that it had been cool and then it’s going to feel worse, per se, it’s not different than dealing with it anytime this summer, but it’s going to feel … a little bit worse coming off a stretch where it had been relatively cool for a couple of weeks,” Castro said.
Across the suburbs, municipalities responded by opening their libraries, police and fire stations and village and city halls as cooling centers. In Naperville, that included all three library branches and the park district’s Fort Hill Activity Center.
“Take care, Naperville, during this extremely hot weather. Stay aware, hydrate and limit your time outdoors,” the city wrote on its social media pages, directing people to its website for additional tips on staying cool.
Groot, the city’s garbage services contractor, started garbage, recycling and yard waste collection an hour earlier than usual this week due to the heat.
Additionally, the Illinois Tollway mobilized for the dangerous weather by launching their 24-hour-a-day Hot Weather Patrols during which the agency deploys additional roadway crews to more quickly locate and assist customers stranded along its system during the hot and humid conditions.
The heat is not the only extreme weather Naperville has experienced so far this summer. Earlier in June, severe storms caused hundreds of power outages and snapped dozens of tree branches.
An EF-0 tornado also briefly touched down in Naperville
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on June 11, traveling for about 1.3 miles before lifting in Lisle. No injuries or damaged buildings were reported but a swath of trees were snapped and uprooted.Even with all the extreme weather so far this season, to some it is just business as usual in Illinois.
“It’s summer, I don’t think it’s that unusual,” Sarah Ruban said.
The 46-year-old Naperville resident was leaving Centennial Beach about 4 p.m. Monday with her 9-year-old daughter, Katya. They live about a half mile away from the pool so coming on a hot day was a no-brainer. The pair was contemplating their next move for staying cool: Superman ice cream from Cookie Dough Creations.
Naperville resident Rob Aurilio said he lives just down the street from Centennial Beach. Since it opened for the season, his 7-year-old son and 4-year-old daughter have been going to the swimming facility once or twice a week but Monday was his first visit.
“People have been complaining that it’s too cold, but I like it when the water is cold,” he said.
But the heat did not present fun for everyone.
Mike Cielocha, 72, and coworker Mike Martino, 71, both Naperville Park District employees, started their workday at 6 a.m. Monday. The weather was tolerable in the morning, but by the afternoon, sweat was running down their foreheads. They’re used to working in this type of weather, they said, and knew the key to fighting the heat: a cooler full of Gatorade.
By about 1:15 p.m., Cielocha said he had already handed out somewhere between 15 to 20 bottles to his colleagues.
“It’s the least I can do,” Cielocha said. “I don’t want any guys passing out.”