BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — Playing on playground equipment is a great pastime for children during the summer, but can easily turn into a hazard, especially during the high temperatures.
According to Louisiana Climatologist, Barry Kaim, Louisiana has been receiving high temperatures, and it’s something people need to be alert to, especially when it comes down to children.
“Some of this equipment here can also get extraordinarily hot, especially when it’s in direct sunlight. So you need to be very careful putting your children in some of these swings or, you know, having them jump on the swings or go down the slides,” said Kaim.
Playground equipment can measure in all sorts of degrees, some being as hot as 150 and 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Kaim said there’s certain advice he suggests such as touching the equipment before allowing the children to play in it.
“Before you put your children on or let them play in the playground, just go over there and put your hand on these various surfaces and make sure that they’re at comfortable temperatures and that your kids are not going to hurt themselves,” he said.
Advice given by Kaim also consists of dressing your child in certain colors to help them with the heat.
“You want to be in the brightest colors that you can get. I mean, white is ideal, obviously. You don’t want to be wearing navy blue or black or things like that. It absorbs all that energy and makes you get even hotter,” he said.
A local parent Maria Davila brings her children to local parks knowing the dangers of the equipment and recommends a few things.
“To help them with the heat, dress them in cotton clothes and look for parks that have shade so the playground won’t be that hot and they’ll be able to enjoy,” Davila said.
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