After a glut of warm weather, winter is coming this weekend, and the City of Denver's Department of Public Health and Environment wants you to be prepared for the cold.
First things first, the city wants you to limit your outdoor time. If you go outside, dress warm!
If you need heat in your home, don't use a gas stovetop or oven. And keep any outside generators and grills away from your windows. Otherwise, you risk carbon monoxide poisoning.
Finally, if you notice any signs of hypothermia and frostbite, get medical help!
So what does frostbite look like?
It starts with a loss of feeling and color around your fingers, toes and face. Your skin might turn white or grayish-yellow. The texture could become firm or waxy. If any of that starts, don't massage yourself or use a heating pad. Instead, warm yourself up with either body heat or warm water.
What about hypothermia?
When your body temperatures drops, you might start shivering. Confusion could set in. You could fumble things you're holding, lose memory, talk with a slur and find yourself falling asleep. If your temperature drops below 95, that's an emergency. Get warm immediately. Wrap up your chest, neck, head and groin in dry, warm blankets until your temperature returns to normal.
Go inside!
On Sunday and Monday, every open recreation center will offer space for people to warm up. Those warming centers will include drinking water, restrooms and a seating area.
Denver Public Libraries are not designated warming centers, but anybody can go inside, warm up and drink water there when they are open. Check here for dates and times.
If you have nowhere to go at night, the Department of Housing Stability will ensure emergency shelters are available. Earlier this year, Denverite wrote about the city's emergency shelter plan for people experiencing homelessness and some of the issues the city will face.
What about the animals?
Yes, cats and dogs have fur. But it's not necessarily enough to keep them safe from frigid temperatures. So bring your beasts inside! If, for whatever reason, you won't let Rover into the living room, make sure she has an outdoor shelter to hide from the bad weather.
If you fail to protect your pet, you could be fined up to $999 and spend up to 300 days in jail.
See a wandering pup that isn't yours or a neighbor's? The city wants you to ring up Denver Animal Protection dispatch.
Shovel your sidewalks!
This is a big one for newcomers: The city doesn't shovel your sidewalks. You're required to! If you don't do it within 24 hours, you could be fined. And if someone falls, you could be held liable.
Let's say you can't shovel for whatever reason: Contact Denver's Snow Angels program, where volunteers will help take care of your shoveling duties.
Better yet, if you can shovel sidewalks, consider helping out? Either voluntarily shovel your neighbors' sidewalks or connect with the Snow Angels program and help out your neighbors in need.
