Pop-up splash parks among Cumberland Council activations for beating extreme heat

Cumberland Council has launched its ‘Cooling Cumberland – Beat the Heat’ campaign to help the community manage extreme heat events with temperatures expected to soar this summer.

Among Council’s offerings will be free pop-up splash park activations along with water refill stations available at outdoor venues and extended trading hours of Council’s community centres and libraries.  

Cumberland Mayor Lisa Lake said heatwaves and extreme heat events can have a severe impact on vulnerable communities and noted “Heatwaves and extreme heat events are more common in Western Sydney with temperatures typically six to 10 degrees hotter than the rest of Sydney.

“According to statistics, it is estimated that there are three times as many heat-related deaths in Western Sydney during heatwaves, so we know extreme heat can have profound impacts on industries, ecosystems and people. It’s really important that Council takes proactive measures to help keep our residents safe and to ensure that everyone is well-prepared and informed during extreme heat events.”

As part of the campaign, Council support services for heat management, as well as brochures with tips for coping with adverse weather conditions will be available to help residents combat heat, stay cool and hydrated. This information will also be distributed to libraries and community centres, seniors, people with disability and carers throughout Council’s services and programs.

Council is also providing more options for the community to make it easier for heat management over the summer period. These include:

• Extending opening hours for our eight libraries until Sunday 25th February 2024 for residents to explore and keep comfortable.

• Extending opening hours for six community centres from Monday 11th December 2023 until Friday 2nd February 2024, which will provide a place of refuge from the heat for residents between midday to 5pm.

• Providing free pop-up splash parks for the community to cool down and enjoy in January 2024, which will operate every Saturday and Sunday during the month from 10am-4pm.

• There are also a number of water refill stations available at outdoor venues across Cumberland which will help residents stay hydrated, cool and reduce environmentally unfriendly plastic drink bottles.

About Heatwaves or Extreme Heat Events in Western Sydney

• The number of days per year over 35 degrees in Western Sydney has increased from an average of 9.5 days per year in the 1970s to 15.4 days per year in the last decade.

• The number of days over 40 degrees in Western Sydney is expected to increase in coming decades according to CSIRO and BoM climate modelling.

For more information about Cooling Cumberland – Beat the Heat campaign 

Image top. Illustrative only. Splash park Credit: pexels/ Caleb Oquendo