New York City is officially going through a heat wave, and Queens Public Library is here to help!
Nearly all open Queens Public Library locations * will operate as NYC Cooling Centers on Tuesday, July 14 and Wednesday, July 15.
Public libraries in New York City serve as official Cooling Centers during a heat emergency. Cooling Centers are places where you can enjoy air-conditioned comfort. They are free and open to the public, even if you are not using their services.
NYC Emergency Management will let the public know when a heat emergency happens, such as an unusually hot day, or several hot days in a row.
If you don’t have air conditioning in your home or your apartment, if you are at risk for heat-related illness, or you just need a cool place to visit, come to your local QPL branch during their hours of operation for great books, programs, and more—and stay for the air conditioning!
Visit https://www.queenslibrary.org/about-us/locations for our hours of operation.
* The following QPL locations will NOT serve as NYC Cooling Centers on July 14 and July 15: Bay Terrace (18-36 Bell Boulevard), Broad Channel (16-26 Cross Bay Boulevard), Elmhurst (86-07 Broadway), Flushing (41-17 Main Street), and Mitchell-Linden (31-32 Union Street).
To check for any changes in the status of the air conditioning at your local library, please contact them directly.
If you need to find another Cooling Center closer to you, please call 311 or visit the NYC Cooling Centers webpage.
Extreme heat can be life-threatening! Visit nyc.gov/beattheheat to learn how to protect yourself and your loved ones during a heat emergency.