Fireworks Still On for Tuesday Night, Here are Some Precautions to Take

The weather caused several Chicago suburbs to cancel or postpone their fireworks plans, but the 's fireworks display will go on in Burr Ridge as scheduled.

Pleasant Dale Park District Director Katherine Parker recommends that people carpool to Walker Park (located at the intersection of 74th Street and Wolf Road) and arrive early in order to find parking.

"Last year, the village had cars towed from Wolf Road, and we don’t want anyone to experience that," said Parker.

The park district will be selling $20 parking permits for its lots, and the church down the street also will be offering parking for about $10, said Parker.

This is the second year the Burr Ridge fireworks celebration in Walker Park will be alcohol-free, .

"We just wanted to go back to basics [last year] ... The real thing back then was the alcohol. We would have had to pay for more protection [if alcohol was allowed,]" said Parker. Parker said that a lot of people asked why the park district didn't have hot dogs last year, so this year, hot dogs are back.

Concessions started at 5 p.m., with snow cones, popcorn, pizza from Ledo’s Pizza in Countryside and hot dogs from SMA's Hot Dog Stand in Willow Springs. The fireworks display is scheduled to start at 9:30 p.m.

The National Weather Service has issued a heat advisory until 9 p.m. tonight and warns that the weather will be very hot and humid with heat indices of 100 to 105 this evening.

Preparing for the heat

In weather like this, heat exhaustion and heat stroke are concerns. Dr. Antonio Pangan, medical director at the is advising people to drink 8 to 16 ounces (or one to two cups) of water before they leave for tonight's fireworks.

"The biggest thing is prevention, trying to make sure you are hydrating yourself in a proactive manner," said Pangan. "Heat exhaustion is the precursor to heat stroke, so you want to catch it at heat exhausion."

Pangan recommends avoiding strenous activity and being prepared for the environment.

"It is very difficult for the body to dissipate heat when temperatures begin reaching your body's temperature [98.6 degrees.]" said Pangan.

Signs of heat exhaustion

Pangan said there are several warning signs that someone may be suffering from heat exhaustion:

• Heart palpitations (heart beating faster than normal)
• Dizziness
• Feeling very very thirsty
• Feeling weak or tired
• Headache
• Confusion
• Nausea and/or vomiting
• Lack of sweating

Pangan said anyone experiencing signs of heat exhaustion should seek a shaded or cooler area (preferably air-conditioned if possible,) and see if they start to feel better.

"Some patients that start developing heat exhaustion stop sweating, so if you're feeling really hot and not sweating, that's a bad sign," said Pangan.

In case of heat stroke

If heat exhaustion progresses, a person can experience heat stroke, which may lead to loss of consciousness or seizures, said Pangan. He said this typically happens when a person's body temperature reaches 104 degrees Fahrenheit. Pangan gave the following measures that should be taken if you believe someone you know is experiencing heat stroke.

• Call an ambulance
• Get the person to a cool location
• Give the person fluids
• Cool the person down with an ice pack to the armpit and neck
• Spray the person with water, and fan the person.

Pangan said people should be drinking beverages with salt in them, such as Gatorade, in order to help replenish the salt lost through sweating and prevent dehydration.

Parker said water will be available at tonight's event, but advises people to bring their own as well. Although the park district did not make any special plans in light of the heat advisory, they made sure plenty of volunteers would be on hand. Parker said 20 volunteers will be helping out tonight.

"It's going to be a scorcher, but we hope people will come out," she said.