As state officials reported its 13th heat-related death on Wednesday, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and First Lady Katie Curran O'Malley urged senior citizens at a downtown Baltimore center to stay indoors and wear lightweight clothing.
The latest heat victim was a senior from Baltimore County with an underlying health condition and was found last week inside a residence where the temperature was above 100 degrees.
Officials also said there have been 481 emergency room visits statewide since July 1 for heat-related illnesses and dehydration, and temperatures are expected to exceed 90 degrees for the next several days.
"As good neighbors, as good family members, take care your relatives. Make sure you know their situation when they don't have air conditioners, and check on them every day," O'Malley said.
Rawlings-Blake and O'Malley were joined at the Waxter Senior Center by several other state officials, who offered advice for those in need of help paying high electric bills.
The mayor also gave a certificate to emergency personnel who responded to two evacuations at city nursing homes last week. Residents were moved out of the Liberty Heights Health and Rehabilitation Center in Northwest Baltimore late Wednesday, and state officials ordered the Ravenwood Nursing and Rehabilitation Center to relocate all 150 of its patients because of problems with its air-conditioning system.
"We have to do everything we can, particularly paying attention to our vulnerable citizens," Rawlings-Blake said.
Staff writer Meredith Cohn contributed to this article.
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