Where to keep cool in Fort Erie as heat dome grips the region
June 30, 2026 at 3:48 PM
A prolonged heat dome will bake Fort Erie this week with highs reaching 37 C, pushing the town’s four public cooling stations into front-line duty for residents who have nowhere cooler to go.
Environment and Climate Change Canada has issued an orange-level heat warning, signalling an elevated risk of heat illness, for the Niagara Region.
The heat warning is expected to last until the end of the week with maximum temperatures of 34 to 37 C on Wednesday and Thursday and overnight lows stalling near 25 C, the kind of nighttime heat that physiologists say builds dangerous stress in the body.
The Leisureplex at 3 Municipal Centre Drive opens at 8 a.m. and closes at 5 p.m. seven days a week. The building offers public washrooms, water fountains, bench seating in the atrium and a walking track above the Kinsmen Rink.
The Fort Erie Public Library’s Centennial branch at 136 Gilmore Road and Crystal Ridge branch at 89 Ridge Road South will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday to Thursday and 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
The Stevensville branch at 2508 Stevensville Road opens Mondays and Saturdays 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Wednesdays and Thursdays 3:30 to 8 p.m.
Visitors can use washrooms, fill water bottles, charge phones and use public computers at the library branches. The Crystal Ridge branch also has a coffee machine the public can use.
Niagara Transit runs free rides to the designated sites during official Environment and Climate Change Canada heat warnings. Residents who need more help can call 211 for a connection to street outreach, or call 211 for overnight resources during extreme weather.
On Tuesday afternoon, The Town of Fort Erie notified residents through its social media channels that splash pads are also available publicly for cooling–located at Douglas, Ferndale, Crystal Ridge, Stevensville Memorial and Sugarbowl parks.
The danger lands hardest on older adults, infants, young children, pregnant women and people with existing health conditions. Heat stroke and heat exhaustion both threaten during stretches like this, with warning signs that include dizziness, nausea, rapid heartbeat and confusion.
For people without air conditioning, a fan helps only until the room hits about 38 C, according to Daniel Gagnon, a heat physiologist with the Montreal Heart Institute and Université de Montréal. Past that point, a fan can heat the body faster, so health researchers advise wetting the skin with a cold shower or a misting spray bottle to mimic sweat.
The current warning holds until Friday, July 3, when Environment and Climate Change Canada expects the heat to break.
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About The Author
Andrew Hawlitzky
Andrew is a Niagara community journalist who has covered everything from local politics to annual festivals and breaking news. He works to make local news a platform where community voices lead the conversation. "If you don't like the news, go out and make some!"
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