Beating the heat is a must for Dongan Hills resident Cathy Vaccaro.

“Very, very hot. Very warm. Too warm for me," she said.

For that, she turns to a seniors-only cooling center.

The Anderson Neighborhood Senior Center in Port Richmond is one of about 300 cooling centers set up around the five boroughs for when the heat gets potentially dangerous.

“First of all, a lot of people don’t have air conditioning, and it’s just horrible in the house without an AC. They could come here, be cool for a couple of hours, and talk to people and mingle," Vaccaro said.

This year, relief from the sun will come with safety precautions. The CDC released COVID-19 guidelines on how to operate cooling centers as the city deals with extreme heat this summer.

Organizers say those guidelines are being followed here, that everyone must have their temperature taken upon arrival, chairs are set up for social distantancing and masks must be worn at all times regardless of vaccination status.

“Everything is very clean here," said Lauren DellaSalla, the director of the center. "The custodian obviously checks more thoroughly that the bathroom is clean, the tables are wiped down. If someone vacates a chair. he wipes it down. All surfaces are wiped down with Lysol wipes." 

This comes as the city is watching a new COVID-19 variant and how it infects the unvaccinated.

Staten Island's low vaccination rate is worrisome for Vaccaro.

“You don’t know who is vaccinated. I was vaccinated, OK? But somebody else can say they are and they’re not, and that’s scary," Vaccaro said.

Despite that, she’s willing to take a chance at her local senior center to cool off and to spend time with her friends.

“Everyone wears masks, and we keep our distance as best as we can," Vaccaro said.

If you’re looking to get out of the sun safely,  the city says to call 311 for hours and locations of a cooling center near you. You can also see a list here.