As summer temperatures soar, Baltimore-area cooling centers offer needed refuge

Robyn Coller, 58, lives in a house in Charles Village without air conditioning. “It’s as hot inside as it is outside,” she said. This summer, that has meant many days over 90 degrees. “I’ve gotten kind of used to it,” she said. “But it’s horrible. It can be pretty bad.” On Tuesday, as temperatures soared to 96 degrees, Coller traveled to the Franciscan Center of Baltimore, a community outreach center and soup kitchen. She came for some food, she said. And once she felt the cool air of the fans, Coller said she felt better. The Franciscan Center is one of 11 cooling centers in Baltimore designated as spots to take refuge during Code Red days, when the heat index — a measure that combines air temperature and relative humidity — is forecast to be 105 degrees or higher.