Senior residents beat heat at cooling centers following storm

FOX LAKE – Some senior residents in Fox Lake received extra care from emergency personnel following Monday's storm, which left many area homes and businesses without power.

As temperatures climbed into the 80s on Tuesday, buildings – such as the Fox Lake Volunteer Fire Department and the Fox Lake Community Center – were transformed into cooling stations and local seniors were made aware of their availability.

After electricity outages shut down the air conditioning, elevator and other devices at Lakeland Apartments in Fox Lake, a senior-only apartment building, resident Marie Katranes said that she and other residents were having difficulty accomplishing normal tasks.

"How could I go to the store and get anything?" she said, adding that she also was eager to get back to her television and regular means of communication. "I'm under doctor's care, and I need a phone."

As of Tuesday afternoon, Katranes and a few other Lakeland residents had been at the Fox Lake Volunteer Fire Department cooling station since Monday night. They were given cots to sleep on, though senior Yvonne Richards said she had a difficult time sleeping.

"I didn't sleep very well," she said about the previous night. "I'm not used to sleeping away from home."

Rita Clark, resident manager at Lakeland, said the storm had shut down the elevators and other appliances at the senior facility for an extended period of time.

"I don't know how long [the electricity is] going to be out yet," she said Tuesday afternoon, noting that emergency personnel were helpful in moving those residents who needed assistance getting down the stairs, as well as providing transportation to and from the cooling stations.

She said that not all tenants from Lakeland Apartments needed to be evacuated.

"It depends on the tenant," she said.

Fox Lake Police Lt. Joe Gliniewicz said the Fox Lake Volunteer Fire Department cooling station had roughly eight to 10 residents Tuesday afternoon, and he expected more to arrive that evening.

He said at that time that power had not yet been restored to all of Fox Lake and explained that because of the high summer temperatures it was important for seniors to stay hydrated and keep their core body temperature at a manageable level.

"We don't want them getting overheated to the point where they recognize it too late," he said.

Members of the Fox Lake Police Department's Explorers program, a volunteer program for youth interested in law enforcement, helped oversee the cooling stations.

Lakeland resident Barbara Goldman said she was pleased with how the situation was being handled and was happy with the Explorers' help.

"These kids are staying up all night and going out and getting us food," she said.

At the Lilac Apartments in Fox Lake, more seniors were taking advantage of cooling stations in the village following Monday's storm.

Cleone Brisson, leasing consultant at Lilac, said that approximately 10 percent of the apartment's 100 or so residents were using the cooling stations.

To learn about the cooling station at the Fox Lake Volunteer Fire Department, 114 Washington St., in Ingleside, call 847-587-3313. For more information about the cooling station at the Fox Lake Community Center, 79 Keystone Ave., in Fox Lake, call 847-587-3335.