As Temperature Ties Record, Residents Seek Relief

Foster Lewis, 9, cools off from an afternoon of batting practice at McLean Little League Fields. Temperatures in the area climbed into the high 90s yesterday. (By Marvin Joseph -- The Washington Post)   |   Buy Photo

That, of course, was before new outages last night.

In some parts of the region, including the District and Fairfax and Prince George's counties, emergency cooling centers were opened for people who lacked air conditioning or just needed a break.

For many, though, the pool was the place to be.

In the District's Barry Farm neighborhood, pool manager Jay Brocks reported more swimmers than usual yesterday afternoon. "I'm seeing faces I don't usually see, because of the heat," he said. "And parents are thanking us for having a place where their kids can jump in and cool off."

Nearby, Trista Dunlap, a 38-year-old University of the District of Columbia student, was cooling off with her son Anthony Brooks Jr., 7.

"It's a gorgeous day," she said, seemingly unfazed by the 95-degree temperature. "It's a beautiful day to be right here in the nation's capital, east of the [Anacostia] River."

On the other side of the river, at the Open City Diner on Connecticut Avenue, normally popular outdoor tables sat empty while upwards of two-dozen people waited for tables inside.

Gail Kellerman, who was waiting for a table with her family, said a broken air-conditioning unit had forced her to abruptly cancel her son's birthday party.

"We were going to cook chocolate-chip pancakes at home and have friends over," Kellerman said. "But the air conditioning went out last night, and we can't get a repair until tomorrow, so it's breakfast here, then the pool, then a movie."

The birthday boy, 7-year-old Sam Kellerman, took the change of plans in stride. "Swimming is my favorite thing, and then I get to see 'Kung Fu Panda,' " he said. "So it's a good birthday."

Farmers also seemed undaunted.

At the Arlington Farmers Market, raspberries were threatening to turn mushy under the sun's glare. But John Mezza, 61, manning the booth for Wheatland Vegetable Farms in Loudoun, said he was more worried more about people picking vegetables at the farms. "It is soaking, soaking work," he said. "Once the sun hits you and you have that much moisture in the ground, it's like being in the sauna."

Mezza added that his wife, who had spent the day gardening, already had laid out his duties for when he got home.

"My instructions today are to make sure the air conditioner is in the window," he said.

Staff writers, Keith L. Alexander and Mary Beth Sheridan, John Wagner and Martin Weil contributed to this report.