Molly Britton is currently staying with a friend in a third floor apartment with no air conditioning. 

As a heat advisory swept over Cleveland in the last few days, the city has advertised its public buildings as cooling centers. Britton said she has used the library and recreation centers. On Tuesday, she sat in the hallway of the Stella Walsh Recreation Center in Slavic Village. 

But when the sun sets, the apartment is still hot, she said. And most of the cool public buildings are closed. 

“I’ll wake up out of my sleep literally just like, I’ll wake up crying because of how uncomfortably hot it is,” Britton said. “Can’t even get comfortable in it.”

An air conditioning unit would make the apartment more bearable, she said. 

She’s not the only one wishing she had ways to keep her living space cool – or to stay safe in the heat wave. United Way’s 211, which connects Cleveland residents with community services and resources, saw an uptick in calls seeking air conditioners and fans starting on Saturday, according to Michelle Snowden, associate director of United Way 211.  

But this early in the season, the United Way doesn’t have programs to share with them.  

“Unfortunately, there’s not many resources that help with appliances altogether, especially around air conditioners,” Snowden said. “There are some programs that start later in the summer that will help people get air conditioners or fans and things like that. But at this time, there is none of that in place.” 

The State of Ohio’s HEAP Summer Crisis program offers assistance with air conditioning or fan purchases, repairs to air conditioning and electric utility bills. It’s open to certain low-income residents. But it doesn’t open until July 1. A spokesperson for the Ohio Department of Development, which runs the program, said it’s timed to start with the beginning of the state’s fiscal year. 

Residents such as Jennifer Kucera, who use the HEAP Summer Crisis program, said it would be ideal to start the program earlier – or have more resources overall to connect residents with cooling devices. Kucera, who was born with a form of Muscular Dystrophy, is the chair of an Ohio advocacy group for people with disabilities called the Ohio Olmstead Task Force. 

“Even in May, it could be warm,” she said. “…And you know people are on fixed incomes. So it’s difficult for people themselves to purchase even fans and, you know, air conditioning units.”

Climate change making Cleveland summers hotter

Cleveland’s late-June heat wave was made twice as likely due to climate change, according to an analysis by Climate Central, a nonprofit that produces research and data about climate change. 

The organization has consistently found that summers – the months of June, July and August – in Cleveland are getting warmer and experiencing more abnormally hot days. From 1970 to 2024, average summer temperatures increased by 3.4 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Even nights are getting warmer in Cleveland, Climate Central found. High nighttime temperatures are detrimental to human health, the organization said, because the temperatures prevent the body from recovering from daytime heat. It can also interrupt sleep, which has negative health consequences. 

“It doesn’t make sense that it would feel hotter at night because the sun’s down,” Britton said. “But like at night time, I just – I can’t even sleep because it’s so uncomfortably hot.” 

Avoiding the heat wave important for vulnerable populations 

Staying cool is especially important for vulnerable groups such as elderly people and those with preexisting medical conditions or with disabilities. 

Those groups are more likely to find it more difficult to access the cooling centers the city offers, said Kucera, the disability advocate. Paratransit – the public transit system for individuals with disabilities – typically requires scheduling a ride at least 24 hours ahead of time. 

“Especially with hot weather, we don’t always know,” Kucera said. “And sometimes the weather service is not always completely accurate. So to plan for something like that is difficult as well.”

Some organizations, like the Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging, can provide extra resources to older adults and people with disabilities. The agency serves about 10,000 individuals with home- and community-based care. 

Individuals who already receive certain services from the Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging are eligible for a fund to help people continue living at home – which can pay for items like air conditioning, said Craig Thomas, the agency’s senior director of Clinical Service.  

“These last couple of days we’ve had multiple calls coming in about air conditioning being out, potentially risky situations in their living environment,” Thomas said. “You know, older homes that aren’t really set up for really moving air around.”