Faith community preparedness · Support sites
Cooling, Warming, Cleaner Air and Charging Sites
Offer one daytime service whose protective condition you can measure.
On a very hot afternoon, a cold night without power or a week of wildfire smoke, a house of worship with working air conditioning, heat or filtration can give neighbors a safe few hours. This guide shows how to offer that, what to check before the doors open, which signs mean call 911, and when to close.
General U.S. guidance. Have local emergency management, public health, fire, building, electrical, accessibility and insurance reviewers look at the actual room and service before you open.
By Dan Whelan, founder of New World Survival
Researched from government agencies, university extension services, and other published sources. See our sources
The five-minute answer
Choose one service and prove it works.
A support site is a room people can come to for a few hours when their own home is too hot, too cold, too smoky or without power. It has posted hours and a closing time. Nobody sleeps there, and nobody receives medical care there.
CDC's review of cooling centers names religious centers among the buildings communities already use this way, alongside libraries, schools and community centers.[3] The same review found that a site works best as one part of a wider local plan, not on its own.
Each of the four services below depends on a different building system and a different measurement. Start with one. Add a second only after the first has run for a full shift without a problem.
Realistic effort: two or three planning meetings, one walk-through with whoever maintains the building, and one practice opening before the public is invited.
If your congregation rents or shares its building, start with the owner and get the use approved in writing. If you cannot put two volunteers on every open hour, do not open a site of your own yet. Offer your volunteers or your announcements to a site that is already running.
Cooling
Air conditioning that holds a measured indoor temperature, drinking water, seating and a plan for heat illness.
You measure: indoor temperature.
Warming
Heat that stays on, a dry and accessible entrance, a place for wet coats and a plan for hypothermia.
You measure: indoor temperature.
Cleaner air
One closed room with filtration sized for it, spare filters and a door that stays shut.
You measure: the outdoor Air Quality Index and, if you have a sensor, the indoor particle trend.
Charging
Outlets a qualified person has approved, tested power strips, cords kept off walking routes and a volunteer at the table.
You measure: devices in use against the approved limit.
The opening gate
Open only when seven things are true today.
Yesterday's check does not count. Buildings change overnight: a breaker trips, a unit ices up, a volunteer calls out. Walk the gate at the start of every shift and write down the result.
If one item fails, do not open that service. Tell your local contact, post the nearest alternative on the door and try again when the item is fixed.
The sequence, start to finish
Pick one service
Name the single service, the room, the hours and the person who can open and close it. Tell your local emergency management office and health department what you plan to offer.
Verify the building condition
Measure the thing you are promising, in the room you will use, before you announce anything.
Set capacity and staffing
Count seats, toilets and volunteers. The smallest of those sets the number of people you can serve.
Open and keep a log
Record the measurement, the head count and any problem on a schedule through the shift.
Close or hand off
Announce the closing time early, tell people where to go next and close when the condition is no longer true.
01
Authority
One named person can approve the building use, the spending, the public message and the decision to close.
02
The condition
The temperature, air or electrical condition has been measured today and meets the range agreed with your local partner.
03
The route
Parking or drop-off, the entrance, the service room, the toilets and the exits all work for a person using a wheelchair or walker.
04
Staffing
The written minimum team is present, with a shift lead and a named relief.
05
Capacity
The posted number matches the seats, toilets and supervision available today.
06
Supplies
Drinking water, a working phone, cleaning supplies and the log sheet are in the room.
07
The handoff
Staff know where to send a person whose need is outside this service, and where everyone goes if the site closes early.
The site opening workbook turns these seven items into a one-page check your shift lead signs.
Cooling site
A fan is not a cooling plan. Air conditioning is.
CDC's advice for hot days is to use air conditioning or go somewhere that has it. Fans help only when the indoor temperature is below 90°F. Above 90°F, CDC says, a fan can increase body temperature.[1] Ready.gov puts it more bluntly: fans create air flow and a false sense of comfort, and they do not prevent heat illness.[2]
Open this sectionClose this section: Cooling site
So a room with fans and open windows is not a cooling site. If your air conditioning cannot hold the room at the temperature agreed with your health department on the day you plan to open, send people to a site that can. Our floor: a room at 90°F or above is never a cooling site, whatever else is agreed.
What to measure
Put a thermometer in the service room at seated height, away from the vents. Read it before opening and on a set schedule through the shift, and write each reading in the log.
Ask your local health department what indoor temperature and what forecast should trigger opening and closing. CDC lists setting those thresholds as a planning step for whoever runs the local heat plan.[3] Beyond our 90°F floor, we do not supply a number, because the right one depends on your climate and your partner.
What to have in the room
- Cool drinking water, free and within reach of every seat
- Seating for the posted capacity, including chairs with arms
- A toilet people can reach without leaving the cooled area
- A quiet corner for someone who feels unwell
- Something to do: tables, books, a television, an outlet
CDC's review lists water access, public restrooms and trained staff among the factors to plan for.[3]
Why people stay away
The same review found the barriers are rarely about the room. People had no ride, did not want to leave a pet, did not think of themselves as at risk, or expected to sit all day with nothing to do.[3]
Answer each one in your announcement: how to get there, whether pets are accommodated, who the site is for and what is available inside. Publish it in the languages your neighbors speak.
Call 911
Signs of heat stroke
Ready.gov lists these signs: a body temperature above 103°F, red, hot and dry skin with no sweat, a rapid and strong pulse, and dizziness, confusion or unconsciousness.[2]
If you suspect heat stroke, call 911 or get the person to a hospital immediately. While you wait, Ready.gov's steps are to move the person to a cool, shaded place, remove outer clothing, and put a cold, wet cloth or ice pack on the head, neck, armpits and groin.[2] Give the 911 call-taker your street address and the door to use.[17]
Watch and cool
Signs of heat exhaustion
Heavy sweating, paleness, muscle cramps, tiredness, weakness, a fast or weak pulse, dizziness, headache, fainting, nausea or vomiting.[2]
Ready.gov's advice is to cool down, remove excess clothing and take sips of water or a sports drink, and to call a health care provider if symptoms get worse or last more than an hour.[2] In a volunteer-run site, treat "getting worse" as a reason to call 911.
CDC names the people to watch most closely: adults 65 and older, infants and young children, pregnant women, and people with asthma or heart disease.[1]
For what households can do at home before they need a site, see our heat wave safety plan.
Warming site
Warm, dry and watched.
A warming site needs heat that will stay on for the whole shift. If the building's heat depends on the same power that just failed in the neighborhood, it is not a warming site today.
Open this sectionClose this section: Warming site
Cold harms people at milder temperatures than most expect. CDC notes that hypothermia can occur above 40°F when a person is chilled by rain, sweat or cold water.[4] Plan for wet arrivals: a mat at the door, hooks or a rack for coats, dry blankets and a few pairs of dry socks.
CDC lists who is most often affected: older adults without adequate food, clothing or heating, and babies sleeping in cold rooms.[4] It also names people who stay outdoors for long periods, including people experiencing homelessness, and people who drink alcohol or use illicit drugs.[4]
Never add heat with a gas oven, a stovetop, a grill or a camp stove indoors. To avoid carbon monoxide poisoning, Ready.gov says to use generators and grills only outdoors and never to heat your home with a gas stovetop or oven.[5] It warns that using an oven or stovetop can also increase the risk of fires and burns.[5] Its power outage guidance adds that camp stoves and charcoal grills should always be used outdoors.[11] If the furnace cannot hold the room, close the service.
Call 911
Signs of hypothermia
In adults: shivering, exhaustion or feeling very tired, confusion, fumbling hands, memory loss, slurred speech and drowsiness. In babies: bright red, cold skin and very low energy.[4]
CDC calls hypothermia a medical emergency. Its instruction is to take the person's temperature and, if it is below 95°F, get medical attention immediately.[4] Our rule for a volunteer-run site is simpler: if a guest shows these signs, call 911, then start the steps below while you wait. A person whose thinking is slowed by cold cannot judge their own condition.[4]
CDC's steps until help arrives[4]
- Get the person into a warm room.
- Remove any wet clothing.
- Warm the center of the body first: chest, neck, head and groin. Use an electric blanket if you have one, or dry layers of blankets, clothing or towels.
- Offer a warm drink if the person is awake. No alcohol. Do not try to give a drink to an unconscious person.
- Keep the person dry and wrapped, including the head and neck.
If the person is unconscious and does not seem to be breathing or to have a pulse, CDC says to handle them gently and get emergency help immediately.[4] Its instruction is to perform CPR until they respond or medical aid arrives.[4]
Frostbite
Ready.gov says frostbite causes loss of feeling and color around the face, fingers and toes. Its signs are numbness, white or grayish-yellow skin, and firm or waxy skin. Its actions: go to a warm room, soak in warm water, use body heat to warm, and do not massage or use a heating pad.[5] Refer the person for medical care.
Household steps for the same weather are in our winter storm guide.
Cleaner air room
One closed room, filtered for its size.
During wildfire smoke, the health concern is fine particles.[8] EPA notes that communities may set up cleaner air spaces where people can get relief, and it publishes guidance for the people who manage those buildings.[8] Do not try to clean the whole building. Pick one room and do it properly.
Choose the room
Pick a room with few outside doors, windows that close fully and a toilet nearby. Keep doors and windows shut and limit how often the entrance opens. EPA's rule for a clean room applies here too: do not do anything that makes it hard to get out.[7] Exits stay unlocked and clear.
Check the building system
The planning framework EPA points building managers to recommends filters rated MERV 13 or higher during smoke events, after checking that the system can handle them.[8] Have your HVAC technician confirm the highest rating your equipment can run, and how to stop it pulling in unfiltered outdoor air.
Size the portable air cleaners
EPA's rule of thumb is a clean air delivery rate (CADR) for smoke of at least two-thirds of the room's area in square feet.[6] A 600 square foot fellowship room works out to a smoke CADR of at least 400. EPA wrote that figure for a room in a home, so for a large room ask your HVAC technician how many units it takes. Run the units continuously on the highest setting, with space around them for air to move, and keep them and their cords out of the walking routes.
Buy the right kind
EPA advises using only air cleaners certified by the California Air Resources Board, because they produce little or no ozone, which is itself a harmful pollutant. It does not recommend ionizers, electrostatic units, UV devices or other electronic air cleaners for smoke.[6] A plain mechanical filter unit is the right tool.
Keep spare filters
EPA says to check filters often and change them when they look dirty or start to smell, and warns that during smoke events they may need changing every few weeks or days.[6][7] Buy spares before smoke season. EPA notes that filtration supplies can be hard to get once a smoke event has started.[6]
Keep particles out of the room
EPA describes a clean room as free of activities that create particles, such as cooking or smoking.[7] For a house of worship we read that to include candles, incense and kitchen service in or beside the room while it is in use.
Reading the Air Quality Index
AirNow reports outdoor air on a scale of six categories. Above 100, air is unhealthy, first for sensitive groups and then for everyone as the number rises.[9]
Agree with your local air or health agency which category opens the room. Check AirNow at the start of each shift and log the number.
Should you buy a sensor?
The planning framework EPA describes for building managers suggests low-cost indoor particle sensors. They are not as accurate as regulatory monitors, but they show whether indoor levels are rising or falling, which tells you whether your filtration is working.[8]
Smoke and heat together
Closing a building to keep smoke out can make it hot. EPA's advice to households is that if you cannot stay cool, it may be best to seek shelter elsewhere.[7] Apply the same test to your room. If you cannot keep it both filtered and below the temperature limit you set for cooling, close and direct people to a site that can do both.
Home preparation for fire season is in our wildfire guide.
Charging table
Treat every outlet as a managed service.
A charging table is the simplest service to offer and the easiest to get wrong. We treat thirty phones on four household power strips in a hallway as a fire and trip hazard. Have an electrician or your facilities lead approve which outlets and circuits you will use and how many devices each can carry, then post that number at the table.
Open this sectionClose this section: Charging table
Cords and power strips
CPSC's safety tips for cords and power strips[12]
- Use only products marked by an independent testing lab such as UL or ETL.
- Do not overload a cord or strip. Move devices to another outlet.
- Never cover a cord with a rug or anything else while it is in use. Heat cannot escape.
- Keep cords where nobody can trip on them or pull them down.
- If a cord feels hot, stop using it and throw it away. Replace cracked or worn cords.
- Extension cords are temporary. They do not make up for too few outlets.
CPSC wrote these for homes. They are the minimum for a room full of guests.
Table rules
- A volunteer stays at the table whenever it is open.
- Guests bring their own charger and stay with their device.
- No device that is swollen, cracked, hot or wet goes on the table.
- Set a time limit when people are waiting.
- Tables sit against a wall, with the walking route and every exit clear.
- If building power fails, the table closes.
These six are our own operating rules, not an agency standard. Adjust them with your electrician and your insurer.
Medical equipment
Say plainly in your announcement what the table is for: phones, tablets and small personal devices. Do not promise power for oxygen concentrators, ventilators or other medical equipment unless a health partner has reviewed and approved that service in writing.
Ready.gov's advice to people who depend on powered medical equipment is to talk with their doctor or health care provider about keeping it running during an outage.[13] It also suggests asking their power provider to put them on a list for priority power restoration.[13] Print that advice on a card and hand it out. Never ask a guest what their diagnosis is.
Generator boundary
The Consumer Product Safety Commission's guidance for portable generators: never run one inside a home or garage, even with doors and windows open. Use it outside only, at least 20 feet away, with the exhaust facing away.[10] Ready.gov adds that the 20 feet is measured from windows, doors and attached garages, that the generator must be kept dry, and that it must cool before refueling.[11]
Both agencies wrote that guidance for homes. We treat it as the minimum for any building people are in, including yours. OSHA says never to attach a generator directly to the electrical system of a structure unless a qualified electrician has properly installed it with a transfer switch.[19] Without that switch, OSHA warns, there is a risk of electrocution for utility workers and others in the area.[19] FEMA's self-assessment for faith organizations asks two questions worth answering on paper: are key facilities equipped with generators, and how many hours of fuel are on site?[18]
Carbon monoxide
CPSC advises battery-powered or battery-backup carbon monoxide alarms on every level of a home.[10] That advice is written for homes. We would also put one in the service room and one near any fuel-burning appliance.
The symptoms are headache, dizziness, weakness, nausea, vomiting, sleepiness and confusion. If you suspect carbon monoxide poisoning, for example when an alarm sounds or several people feel unwell at once, CPSC's instruction is to get outside to fresh air immediately and then call 911.[10]
More on sizing and placement is in our generator guide.
People and access
A site people cannot reach or use is not open.
The neighbors most likely to need a cooled, warmed or filtered room are also the most likely to have trouble getting to it. Walk the route they will take before you publish an address.
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Walk the route
The Department of Justice's emergency planning guidance, written for state and local governments, lists the areas to survey in a public shelter. For a daytime site the relevant ones are parking, the exterior route from parking to the entrance, the entrance itself, the toilets and the emergency exit.[16]
Walk each one with a person who uses a wheelchair or walker. Fix the barrier, move the service to a room without one, or do not advertise the site as accessible.
Service animals
ADA.gov states that Title III of the ADA does not apply to religious organizations.[15] A government program or a public-serving operating partner using your building is generally covered by the ADA in its own right, and state or local law may reach further. Ask local counsel what binds you, and plan to the standard either way.
Under that standard a service animal is a dog trained to do work or perform tasks for a person with a disability. When it is not obvious what service the dog provides, staff may ask only two questions.[14] Is the dog a service animal required because of a disability? What work or task has it been trained to perform? Staff may not ask about the disability or request documentation.[14]
Pets
Pets are a separate question from service animals. CDC's review lists not wanting to leave a pet behind as one reason people skip cooling centers, and pet accommodation as a feature to decide on in advance.[3]
Decide before opening: pets welcome in carriers or on leashes in a named area, or not accommodated, with the nearest site that does take them. Put the answer in the announcement.
Privacy and children
Count heads. Do not collect names, addresses, diagnoses or immigration details to let someone sit in a cool room. If a partner requires a sign-in, ask what the minimum is and where the sheet goes at closing.
Children stay with their own adult. A support site is not child care, and volunteers are never alone with a child. Follow your institution's safeguarding policy without exception.
The accessibility and functional needs guide covers communication access, quiet space and the rest of the service-animal standard.
Running a shift
Watch the condition that justifies being open.
We set two volunteers as the floor for any shift: one can stay with a guest while the other makes a call or opens the door for responders. Name a shift lead, and give every volunteer a written card with the address, the door to send an ambulance to and the partner's phone number.
Open this sectionClose this section: Running a shift
When someone calls 911, the call-taker will ask for the location, the phone number and what is happening. Stay on the line until told to hang up.[17]
Before opening
Walk the seven-item gate. Read and log the temperature or the Air Quality Index. Check water, toilets, the phone and the exits. Brief the team on who calls 911 and who meets the ambulance at the door.
Every hour
Log the measurement, the head count and the time. Walk the room and look at each guest. Restock water. Check cords, air cleaners and the entrance.
When something changes
A guest looks unwell: use the 911 rules in this guide. The measurement drifts: tell the shift lead before it crosses the limit. A need is outside the service: give the referral, do not improvise.
Closing
Announce the closing time an hour ahead and again at fifteen minutes. Tell each remaining guest where the next open site is. If a guest has nowhere safe to go, the shift lead calls the local partner or 211 for a referral before locking up. Clear the room, clean, lock up, and file the log.
After each activation, spend fifteen minutes with the team on three questions: what did the log show, what nearly went wrong, and what one thing changes before next time. FEMA's guidance asks organizations to revise their plans from lessons learned and to keep accurate records.[18]
Stop conditions
Close when the promise is no longer true.
People come because you said the room was cool, warm, filtered or powered. The moment that stops being true, the kind thing is to say so and point them somewhere that works.
Give the shift lead the authority to close without calling anyone for permission. Write that sentence into the plan and have your governing body approve it.
If the need in your neighborhood is overnight, that is a different service with a different operator. Read the shelter decision guide before you say yes.
Partners and publicity
A site nobody knows about helps nobody.
CDC tells people looking for an air-conditioned place to dial 2-1-1 or contact their local health department or emergency management agency.[1] Those are the three places that need your address, hours and contact before the first hot week.
Open this sectionClose this section: Partners and publicity
In Maricopa County, Arizona, a regional heat relief network includes faith-based organizations.[3] It brings new sites on board, lists each one on a public map and shares heat safety information with the people who manage them.[3] Ask your county whether it runs something similar. Joining an existing network is better than opening alone.
Who to call first
- Your county or city emergency management office
- Your local health department
- Your 211 provider
- Your insurer and, if you have one, your denominational office
- Your electric utility, for outage and restoration information
What to say
"We have one room that seats 40. We can offer daytime cooling, 10 to 6, on days you declare a heat event. We have air conditioning, water and two accessible toilets. We do not have backup power. Who should we tell when we open and close, and what do you need from us to list the site?"
The first person you reach may never have been asked this. That is normal. Ask who coordinates cooling or warming sites, and call that person next.
Put it in writing
FEMA describes a memorandum of agreement as a written relationship that sets out roles and responsibilities, and advises involving legal counsel while it is drafted. Where a formal agreement is not wanted, FEMA notes the relationship can still be documented through contact lists and asset inventories.[18]
What to publish
- The service, in plain words, and what it is not
- Address, entrance and where to park or be dropped off
- Days, hours and the closing time
- Accessibility, pets and languages spoken
- Where to go when you are closed or full
Next step: fill in the workbook
Eight short sections, from the service and its limits through the opening gate, the shift log and the closing handoff. Then return to the faith community preparedness guide for the rest of the plan.
Questions leaders ask
Settle these before the first opening.
Is a cooling or warming site the same as a shelter?
No. A support site is open for posted daytime hours and nobody sleeps there. A shelter houses people overnight and needs a qualified operator, beds, meals, sanitation and many more approvals.
Can we open a cooling site with fans if we have no air conditioning?
No. CDC says fans help only when the indoor temperature is below 90°F and can raise body temperature above that. Direct people to an air-conditioned site instead.
What indoor temperature should a cooling or warming site hold?
Set the number with your local health department. The right threshold depends on your climate and the plan your county already runs. Measure and log it every shift.
What should a volunteer do if a guest seems confused or very drowsy?
Call 911. Confusion is a sign of both heat stroke and hypothermia. Give the address and the door to use, then follow the cooling or warming steps in this guide until help arrives.
How many air cleaners does a cleaner air room need?
EPA's rule of thumb is a smoke clean air delivery rate of at least two-thirds of the room's square footage, so 400 for a 600 square foot room. Ask your HVAC technician how many units a large room takes.
Can people plug in medical equipment at our charging table?
Only if a health partner has approved that service in writing. Otherwise say the table is for phones and small personal devices, and share Ready.gov's advice to plan with a doctor and to ask the power provider about priority power restoration.
Where can we run a portable generator?
Outside only, at least 20 feet from the building, with the exhaust facing away, and never in a building or garage. That is CPSC's guidance for homes, and we treat it as the minimum for any occupied building.
Do we have to let pets in?
That is your decision, and you should announce it either way. Service animals are a separate matter. A government program or a public-serving operating partner using your building is generally covered by the ADA in its own right, and state or local law may reach further.
Primary sources
Planning references
Each source below was opened and read on the access date shown. Several were written for households or for government agencies, and the text above says so where it matters. Where a rule is our own, the text says that too.
- CDC, About Heat and Your Health (July 20, 2026). Accessed October 12, 2026.
- Ready.gov, Extreme Heat. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- CDC, The Use of Cooling Centers to Prevent Heat-Related Illness: Summary of Evidence and Strategies for Implementation (2017). Accessed October 12, 2026.
- CDC, Preventing Hypothermia (August 25, 2026). Accessed October 12, 2026.
- Ready.gov, Winter Weather. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- U.S. EPA, Indoor Air Filtration (last updated July 28, 2026). Accessed October 12, 2026.
- U.S. EPA, Create a Clean Room to Protect Indoor Air Quality During a Wildfire. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- U.S. EPA, Wildfires and Indoor Air Quality in Schools and Commercial Buildings. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- AirNow, Air Quality Index (AQI) Basics. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Carbon Monoxide Information Center. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- Ready.gov, Power Outages. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, CPSC Warns Consumers About Faulty Extension Cords, Power Strips and Surge Protectors (February 24, 1999). Accessed October 12, 2026.
- Ready.gov, People with Disabilities. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- U.S. Department of Justice, ADA Requirements: Service Animals. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- U.S. Department of Justice, ADA.gov, Businesses That Are Open to the Public. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- U.S. Department of Justice, ADA.gov, Emergency Planning. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- 911.gov, Calling 911. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- FEMA, Engaging Faith-Based and Community Organizations: Planning Considerations for Emergency Managers (April 2025). Accessed October 12, 2026.
- OSHA, Using Portable Generators Safely (Fact Sheet DTSEM FS-3286) (September 2005). Accessed October 13, 2026.
This guide is educational. It does not replace local emergency management, public-health, fire, building, electrical, accessibility, insurance, legal or denominational review of your actual building and service.
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