Pasadena Tells Parents: Keep Kids Cool, the Heat Can Be Dangerous

This week, get set for nothing but the nineties.

The National Weather Service issued an Extreme Heat Warning for the San Gabriel Valley — including Pasadena and Altadena — through 8:00 p.m. Sunday, with temperatures forecast to reach 100 degrees.

The stretch of recurring heat that has kept local health officials pressing the same message: “Keep Your Kids Safe in Extreme Heat.”

“As temperatures rise and kids are having fun in the sun, stay hydrated, cool, and alert,” the Pasadena Public Health Dept. messages.

The Dept. lists precautions — stay cool and play in the shade, stay hydrated and drink plenty of fresh cool water, never leave your children in a parked car, wear lightweight and light-colored clothes, and take frequent breaks when playing outside — and directs residents to the state’s HeatReady.ca.gov website for additional resources.

Children under 4 face the highest risk because their bodies cannot cool themselves as effectively as adults, according to city officials and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Infants and toddlers are slower to sweat and faster to overheat. That biological reality turns parked cars into death traps: the National Safety Council reports that 17 children have died in hot cars in the United States so far in 2026, and an average of 37 die that way each year. Nationally, more than 1,060 children have died from vehicular heatstroke since 1998, according to NoHeatStroke.org.

In Pasadena, leaving a child in a parked car is both dangerous and illegal, city officials reminded. Bystanders are legally allowed to intervene.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, the regional authority that coordinates heat response across the county, has reinforced the warnings. Muntu Davis, the county’s health officer, said in a department release that heat kills more people in the United States each year than floods, storms, and lightning combined. Older adults, young children, outdoor workers, athletes, and people with chronic medical conditions are most vulnerable, Davis said.

Anyone showing signs of severe heat illness — a body temperature of 103 degrees or higher, confusion, fainting, a rapid pulse, hot, red skin, headache, dizziness, or nausea — needs emergency medical care, the county health department said. Residents should call 911 immediately.

For Pasadena and Altadena families looking for relief, the city points to  Jackie Robinson Community Center at 1020 North Fair Oaks Avenue.

Public pools offer another option: John J. Kennedy Pool at 1081 North Fair Oaks Avenue and the Rose Bowl Aquatics Center at 360 North Arroyo Boulevard. The La Pintoresca Park Splash Pad at 45 East Washington Boulevard is open sunrise to sunset.

Pasadena’s 10 public library branches are not designated cooling centers but offer air-conditioned space during regular hours.

Pasadena Water and Power urged customers to conserve energy during the heat wave by setting thermostats to 78 degrees or higher, reducing appliance use during peak hours from 4:00 to 9:00 p.m., and closing blinds during the hottest part of the day. For power emergencies, residents can call (626) 744-4673.

Residents can sign up for emergency alerts through the city’s PLEAS notification system at CityOfPasadena.net/Fire/PLEAS. County residents can also call 211 or visit ready.lacounty.gov/heat to locate nearby cooling centers.

Additional heat safety information is available at HeatReady.ca.gov, the California Department of Public Health’s statewide campaign, and on the City of Pasadena’s Extreme Weather Portal at CityOfPasadena.net.