Heat Safety Week  (May 18-22, 2026)

Monday, 5/18: What is Heat-related Illness? 

• Symptoms of heat stroke and heat exhaustion.
• Heat stroke is a medical emergency.
• Risks of heat stroke in vehicles, and how to keep children and pets safe.
• Provide statistics on heat-related illnesses in your community and encourage them to stay heat safe.

Tuesday, 5/19: Heat Safety Tips 

• How to prevent and treat heat stroke and heat exhaustion, such as staying in air conditioning, finding shade when outdoors, drinking plenty of water, and paying attention to the news for health and safety updates.
• Share information about heat-related resources in your community, such as cooling center locations
• How to keep children safefrom heat stress in vehicles.
• Share other heat safety resources from Heat.gov

Wednesday, 5/20: Check on your Family, Friends, Teammates, and Neighbors 

• Make sure that friends, family, and other community members are staying safe from heat.
• Athletes should limit outdoor activity in extreme heat

Thursday, 5/21: Outdoor Recreation & Heat Safety  

• Pre-Memorial Day —a great opportunity to spread heat safety messaging for people who spend the weekend outdoors.
• Remind people that it’s important to limit outdoor exercise on hot days if possible and try to schedule workouts earlier or later in the day when temperatures are cooler.
• Share tips to keep people safe when exercising or recreating outdoors, including 1) wearing loose, light-weight, and light-colored clothing, 2) drinking more water than usual and not waiting until they’re thirsty to hydrate, 3) pacing themselves during physical activity, 4) taking frequent breaks in air conditioning and shade, and 5) knowing the signs of heat-related illness.
• National Safe Boating WeekMay 16-22, 2026. Share tips for people to stay safe if spending time outdoors on a boat.

Friday, 5/22: Sun Safety (Don’t Fry Day) 

• In recognition of Don’t Fry Day, raise awareness about sun safety while outdoors.
• The National Council on Skin Cancer Prevention has a toolkitwith messaging and media to share about this topic with hashtag #DontFryDay.
• Remind people that ultraviolet rays from the sun can damage your skin and make you more susceptible to dehydration and heat-related illness.
• Share tips to stay safe in the sun, such as seeking shade, wearing protective clothing, and applying (and reapplying) sunscreen.

https://heat.gov/event/2026-heat-safety-week-social-media-campaign/