Publications & Sites 
City issues extreme cold notice
Warming centers and hours:
• Fleetwood-Jourdain Center, 1655 Foster St., hours 8 a.m. -8 p.m.
• Levy Senior Center, 300 Dodge Ave., 8 a.m.– 8 p.m.
• Chandler-Newberger Center, 1028 Central, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• Main Library, 1703 Orrington Ave., 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• North Branch Library, 2026 Central St., 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
• Chicago Ave./Main Branch Library, 900 Chicago Ave., 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Updated: February 25, 2013 12:14PM
EVANSTON
The Evanston Health Department issued an extreme cold notice Tuesday and is opening up Robert Crown Center as a 24-hour warming center in response to the subzero temperatures which have gripped the area.
The center is located at 1701 Main Street.
The department also is working on getting some other warming centers open during the cold spell, said Evonda Thomas, the department’s director, on Tuesday.
Along with Crown, she said that several other community centers, as well as the Evanston Public Libraries, would be available as warming centers during their regular hours of operation Tuesday and Wednesday.
Officials have also added a transportation component, good for Jan. 22 and Jan. 23, for residents who have no means of transportation to get to one of the warming centers.
In such cases, people can use an Evanston taxi company at no charge. Upon arrival at one of the community centers, the passenger or taxi driver only needs to go inside the center to obtain a taxi coupon, Thomas said.
The coupon will then reimburse the driver for one-way travel to the warming center, she said.
Participating taxi companies and their telephone numbers are American Taxi, 847-673-1000, Best Cab, 847-864-2500, 303 Cab, 847-733-0303, Northshore Cab 847-864-7500, and Purple Cab, 847-662-6000.
Officials stressed the importance of people taking precaution in the extreme cold.
“Common sense is going to prevail on all of this,’’ said Dr. Greg Rosen, an emergency physician at St. Francis Hospital, 355 Ridge Ave.
People should obviously try to stay indoors. If they have to go out, the biggest thing is dressing in layers, Rosen said.
“Exposed skin is going to lose heat much faster than any skin covered up,’’ said Rosen. So parents should make sure their children have gloves, hats and a warm winter coat before going out.
Then, if for some reason, people are out in the cold, they should minimize their time outside, he said, and at the first sign of any cold exposure injury, “the best thing you can do is remove yourself from the cold environment,’’ he said.~.
