PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Summer is in full swing, which means concerts, markets and festivals are happening all over the Portland metro area. But with July’s extreme heat, some celebrations have been cancelled.
With the ongoing heat advisory expected to continue through Sunday, many event organizers are now second-guessing whether it’s safe to continue the fun under the hot sun.
“Yeah, we’re a little afraid of the hot weather sometimes, but don’t be afraid – come on down,” Art Larrance of the Oregon Brewers Festival said.
The extreme heat has already caused several outdoor concerts and events to be called off. In an announcement on Thursday, Vancouver Parks, Recreation & Cultural Services stated they had
“…canceled the Friday, July 29 performance of the Waterfront Park concert series due to extreme heat. Curtis Salgado was set to headline the concert with special guest Bobby Torres; the performance cannot be rescheduled at this time.”
While some events have been dropped altogether, others are choosing to modify schedules or add extra safety measures to keep people cool, like the PDX live concert series taking place Friday and Saturday at Pioneer Courthouse Square.
A spokesperson with the square told KOIN 6 News with the heat in mind, they have added water misters, shade canopies and are now allowing attendees to bring in two outside water bottles.
“Over the last few years, we’ve had this increase in temperature, which makes you become a little lethargic, and you sit down, and ‘I’ll wait to have the next beer,” Larrance said.
But Larrance explained they have decided to brave the high temperatures and despite moving forward, he told KOIN 6 News the event is still taking the heat seriously. “We’re beating the heat with some lower alcohol beers. There aren’t a lot of high-alcohol beers. We’ve got misters, we got wind that’s blowing through here, we got a lot of covered tenting areas that’s cool. And right now, it’s all in shade,” Larrance said.