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PHILADELPHIA<\/strong> – <\/span>It is a concrete oasis in the very heart of Center City.<\/p>\n On a scorching afternoon, the splash pads at Dilworth Park have transcended their status as a mere playground. Right now, they are a necessity.<\/p>\n With temperatures soaring across the Delaware Valley, local families are trading their air-conditioned living rooms for a quick, icy drenching.<\/p>\n RELATED: <\/strong>How to stay cool and save on energy as heat dome brings triple-digit temperatures to million<\/strong><\/p>\n “It is hot,” said Alfreda Frazier of West Philadelphia, watching her family play. “I want to cut the air off! The water is beautiful, there’s a nice little breeze, you get wet with the children… I\u2019m loving it, it\u2019s really nice.”<\/p>\n She isn’t the only one loving it. Frazier was joined by her grandchild and great-grandchildren, who were busy literally soaking it all in\u2014even if they played a little coy about it.<\/p>\n When asked what his favorite part of the splash pad was, one of the kids laughed and replied, “Nothing!” Meanwhile, a few blocks away at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, two of the city’s most famous residents could have used a splash pad of their own.<\/p>\n Statues of Joe Frazier and Rocky Balboa stood tall against the sun, somehow without breaking a sweat. The same could almost be said for the brave tourists still attempting to run the iconic “Rocky Steps.”<\/p>\n Among them was Andrew Pivirotto, visiting from Atlanta. Today was his birthday.<\/p>\n “I\u2019m a huge fan of the Rocky movies,” Pivirotto said.<\/p>\n Despite the thick humidity, he had only one birthday wish this year: to take on the steps. After conquering the climb, he stood at the top, threw his fists in the air, and shouted, “I did it!”<\/p>\n You know who wasn’t turning down water? The massive crowds gathering for Wawa\u2019s annual Hoagie Day. Philly doesn’t play about their free hoagies, which is why the oppressive heat did nothing to stop the massive, winding lines.<\/p>\n “I come through every year,” said one South Philly resident. When asked if it\u2019s always this hot, she didn’t hesitate: “No, no, no, it hasn\u2019t always been this hot! Nope… but they got a lot of hoagies.”<\/p>\n While most of the thousands of hoagies were enjoyed strictly in the shade, the day meant much more than a free lunch for some.<\/p>\n For Debra Kroeger of Drexel Hill, Hoagie Day is a moving tribute to her late father.<\/p>\n “My father brought me in 1976,” Kroeger shared. Now, 50 years later, she is keeping the family tradition alive with the next generation.<\/p>\n “This has a deeper meaning, it doesn\u2019t matter how hot it is,” Kroeger said. “No baby, I don\u2019t feel the heat. We are feeling the love, and this is how they get to know my father, even though they could never meet him.” Severe WeatherPhiladelphia <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" PHILADELPHIA – It is a concrete oasis in the very heart of Center City. On a scorching afternoon, the splash pads at Dilworth Park have transcended their status as a mere playground. Right now, they are a necessity. With temperatures soaring across the Delaware Valley, local families are trading their air-conditioned living rooms for a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":32285,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11573],"tags":[2354,553,6642,224,46,11745,3688,12166,18692,1939,11744,3564,3763],"class_list":["post-32284","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-philadelphia-breaking-news","tag-cool","tag-families","tag-heat","tag-holiday","tag-news","tag-pa","tag-philadelphia","tag-philly","tag-severe-weather","tag-staying","tag-us","tag-wave","tag-weather"],"rttpg_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",0,0,false],"landscape":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",0,0,false],"portraits":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",0,0,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",150,150,false],"medium":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",300,300,false],"large":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",1024,1024,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",1536,1536,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",2048,2048,false],"post-thumbnail":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",370,265,false],"kava-thumb-s":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",150,85,false],"kava-thumb-s-2":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",230,230,false],"kava-thumb-m":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",400,400,false],"kava-thumb-m-vertical":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",370,500,false],"kava-thumb-m-2":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",570,450,false],"kava-thumb-l":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",1170,650,false],"kava-thumb-xl":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",1920,1080,false],"kava-thumb-masonry":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",600,999,false],"kava-thumb-justify":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",640,640,false],"kava-thumb-justify-2":["https:\/\/images.foxtv.com\/static.fox29.com\/www.fox29.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1200\/630\/philadelphia-splash-pad.jpg?ve=1&tl=1",1280,640,false]},"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"#RiseCelestialStudios","author_link":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/author\/ralph-c\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"Philadelphia Viral News<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"PHILADELPHIA – It is a concrete oasis in the very heart of Center City. On a scorching afternoon, the splash pads at Dilworth Park have transcended their status as a mere playground. Right now, they are a necessity. With temperatures soaring across the Delaware Valley, local families are trading their air-conditioned living rooms for a…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32284","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32284"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32284\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32286,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32284\/revisions\/32286"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32285"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32284"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32284"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32284"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
The video evidence suggests otherwise. The kids\u2014and even local birds\u2014were seen dodging and diving through the shooting water jets to stay alive in the stifling heat.<\/p>\nNo Sweat at the Art Museum<\/h2>\n
Free Hoagies and Family Traditions<\/h2>\n
While immense effort went into keeping the hardworking Wawa employees cool behind the tables, the customers were focused entirely on the prize: their free hoagie. By the looks of it, everyone got one\u2014even a brave man sporting a Dallas Cowboys shirt.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n