Temperatures climbed to the upper 90s in the state Thursday, prompting the National Weather Service to issue a heat advisory for the entire state and forcing those who work outside to alter their schedules.
Conway and Camden reached 99 degrees -- the highest marks in the state so far this year. Fort Smith, Batesville and Walnut Ridge all saw highs of 97 degrees, and Hot Springs reached 96 degrees.
At least seven cooling centers opened in the state Thursday to offer people relief from the blistering heat.
No Arkansas town has seen triple digit readings yet, according to meteorologist Charles Dalton of the National Weather Service in North Little Rock.
Heat indexes, however, reached 115 in Corning, 114 in Searcy, 111 in Jonesboro and Arkadelphia and 107 in Little Rock and Conway. The heat index is a measurement of how air feels on skin when combining the temperature with relative humidity.
The entire state is under a heat advisory until 8 p.m. today because heat indexes are expected to be 105 degrees or higher during the day, Dalton said. The National Weather Service in Memphis also issued an excessive heat warning for Clay, Craighead, Greene, Lawrence and Randolph counties until 8 p.m., saying heat indexes are expected to reach 112 degrees in those areas.
"In terms of temperatures, we're not going to break any records, but this is a call to the safety of the people," Dalton said. "It's a call to action to take precaution from the heat."
Officials in Little Rock opened four cooling centers Thursday and will keep them open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. until temperatures cool. They are located at the Dunbar Community Center at 1001 W. Sixth St., East Little Rock Community Center at 2500 E. Sixth St., Southwest Community Center at 6401 Baseline Road and West Central Community Center at 4521 John Barrow Road.
The Heat Relief Center at 2700 Willow St. in North Little Rock is open from noon until 5 p.m.
The Salvation Army also opened cooling centers in Fayetteville and Bentonville. James Gregory, a monitor at the Bentonville center, said five people sought relief from the heat in the center Thursday afternoon.
"As long as the temperature stays up this hot, we'll be open," he said.
Arkansas' heat is the result of a ridge of high pressure stalled over eastern Oklahoma and Texas, Dalton said. The ridge, which also was responsible for wildfires in California and Nevada, blocks rain-producing systems from forming over the state and instead deflects them.
Dalton said today is predicted to be the hottest day of the year so far.
Heat has forced some workers to change their schedules to take advantage of cooler temperatures in early morning and evening hours.
Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department spokesman Danny Straessle said road repair crews will adjust their work times based on the heat.
"Our crews work in all the elements, but in hot weather safety is always very important," he said. "Our crews take frequent water breaks and they look out for each other.
"This heat presents a dangerous situation."
John Mulson, general manager of Richardson Roofing in Fort Smith, said his employees work between 5 a.m. and noon on hot days, take a break during the warmest hours of the day, and then return to the job from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
"It slows us down a bit," he said. "We had a couple of guys get sick [Wednesday] and didn't come back today. I want them to take as many breaks as they need."
Forecasters call for a slight break in the heat Sunday as the high pressure ridge "breaks down" and moves west. There is a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms from Sunday evening through Tuesday, Dalton said. The southeastern half of the state is more likely to see rain, he said.
Temperatures are expected to drop a few degrees during a brief break before warming to the mid- and upper 90s later next week.
The respite doesn't impress Mulson.
"When you're on a roof, you don't feel much of a difference between 95 and 105 degrees," he said. "It's damn hot."
In Camden, the 99-degree high Thursday kept many people from going to Carnes Park Pool, employee Shuntario Smith said. He said there were only three groups swimming at the municipal pool Thursday afternoon.
"It may be because it was hot," he said. "People don't want to get out when it's too hot.
"But if they want to cool down, they can come to the pool. We keep the water pretty cool."
Requests for ice at the Home Ice Co. in Harrison were slow Thursday. The Boone County city had the lowest high reading in the state for the day with 93 degrees.
"It's hot here," employee Connie Gray said. "Sometimes, it gets so hot people won't get out on the roads. They won't go camping, and they don't need ice.
"Sometimes it gets so hot people just don't move around."
State Desk on 07/21/2017