The short version

  1. Anyone confused, passed out, or very hot to the touch? Call 911 and start cooling them now.
  2. Indoors above 90°F, or anyone high-risk and it's getting hot? Leave now for a cooling center, library, mall, or a friend's home with AC. Dial 211 or use the Heat Relief Network map.
  3. Cool your body: wet cloths, cool shower, drink water. Fans help only below 90°F indoors.
  4. Quick checks: thermostat on Cool, breaker, filter, drain-pan switch, outdoor fan. Nothing more risky than that.
  5. Renters: tell your landlord in writing today and keep proof.
  6. Check on neighbors and pets, especially older adults living alone.

1. Check yourself and others for heat illness now

Call 911 for heat stroke: confusion, slurred speech, passing out, seizures, or a body temperature of 103°F or higher with hot, red, dry or damp skin. Move the person somewhere cooler and cool them fast with cold water, wet cloths, or ice while you wait. Don't give them anything to drink. (CDC)

Heat exhaustion (heavy sweating, cold clammy skin, weakness, headache, nausea, dizziness, muscle cramps): get to a cool place, loosen clothes, use cool wet cloths, and sip water. Get medical help if the person vomits, gets worse, or isn't better in an hour. See Heat exhaustion vs. heat stroke.

When to leave the house right away

Leave now if…

  • It's 90°F or hotter inside. Above 90°F, CDC says a fan can actually raise body temperature, so fans can't keep you safe.
  • Anyone at home is high-risk and the indoor temperature is rising past the low-to-mid 80s with no fix in sight.
  • Anyone shows signs of heat illness.
  • You live in a mobile home, RV, or trailer: these heat up fastest.

Who's high-risk

  • Adults 50 and older, especially 65+. In 2025, 90% of indoor heat deaths in Maricopa County were people 50 or older.
  • Babies, young children, and pregnant people.
  • People with heart, lung, or kidney disease, diabetes, or mental illness, or who take medicines that affect sweating or fluids.
  • Anyone who lives alone or can't easily leave.

What "too hot" means here: Phoenix and Tucson require rental AC to cool every room to 82°F or below (86°F for evaporative coolers). Above 90°F, CDC says fans stop helping. There's no single safe number for everyone, so if it's above about 82–85°F and climbing and someone at home is high-risk, don't wait.

Why this matters: in Maricopa County's 2025 heat deaths, an AC unit was present in 94% of indoor deaths, and in 72% of those cases the unit wasn't working. About 23% of indoor heat deaths happened in RVs, trailers, or mobile homes, which are only 5% of homes. (MCDPH 2025 report)

2. Go somewhere cool

Even a few hours in air conditioning lowers the risk of heat illness (CDC).

Cooling centers

Free, air-conditioned places to rest, with water. Hours vary; some are open overnight. Find one on the Heat Relief Network map (Maricopa Association of Governments) or on our Resource Map.

Dial 2-1-1

Free and confidential. Ask for the nearest open cooling center, transportation, or emergency shelter. Call 211 · 211arizona.org

Libraries, malls, stores

Public libraries, shopping malls, and large stores are free places to cool off during the day. Bring water and any medicines.

Friends & family

Ask someone with working AC if you can stay for the day or night. Phoenix tenants: the city's Landlord and Tenant Program can help with access to 24-hour cooling centers or emergency shelter (602-262-7210).

Can't get anywhere? Call 211 for a ride. If someone is sick, call 911. Never sit in a parked car with the engine running in a garage (carbon monoxide).

3. Cool down fast while you sort it out

Cool your body

  • Wet cloths or a wet T-shirt on your neck, armpits, and head; refresh often.
  • Take cool (not ice-cold) showers or baths, or soak your feet.
  • Drink water regularly; don't wait until you're thirsty. Skip alcohol.
  • Fans only below 90°F indoors. Above that, a fan can raise body temperature (CDC). EPA also says not to rely on fans in the mid-90s or higher, and never in a closed room.

Cool your space

  • Close blinds and curtains on sunny windows; cover windows with foil or reflective film.
  • Pick one room (lowest floor, north side, fewest windows) and close it off.
  • Don't use the oven or stove; eat cold food.
  • Open windows only when it's cooler outside than inside (usually before dawn).
  • A portable or window AC for one room helps a lot while you wait for repairs.

4. Quick checks before you call a technician

These are safe checks anyone can do. Don't open the outdoor unit's panels: parts inside can hold a dangerous electrical charge even with the power off.

  1. Thermostat: set to Cool, the temperature set a few degrees below room temperature, fan on Auto. Blank screen? Replace the batteries.
  2. Power: is the power out? See Blackout and check your utility's outage map. Otherwise check the breaker panel for a tripped AC or furnace breaker and the outdoor shut-off box. Reset a tripped breaker once. If it trips again, leave it off and call a technician.
  3. Filter: a clogged filter can stop airflow and freeze the coil. Replace it if it's dirty.
  4. Drain-pan (condensate) switch: many systems shut off when the drain pan or drain line fills with water. If the pan is full, turn the system off, empty the pan, and clear the outside end of the drain line (a wet/dry vacuum works). Never bypass the switch.
  5. Outdoor unit: with the AC on, is the fan spinning? Clear weeds and debris from around it. If you see ice on the lines or coil, turn cooling off and run the fan only to thaw it (this can take hours), then call for service.
  6. Vents: make sure supply vents and the return grille are open and not blocked.

Stop and call a pro if a breaker trips again, you smell burning, the outdoor unit hums or buzzes but the fan won't spin, or water is leaking near electrical parts. Ask the company if they offer emergency or priority service for older adults or medical needs, and go somewhere cool while you wait.

5. Renters: tell your landlord in writing, today

Arizona law requires landlords to keep air conditioning that they supply in good, safe working order (A.R.S. 33-1324). Cooling is an essential service under A.R.S. 33-1364.

  1. Notify your landlord in writing. Describe the problem and give a reasonable deadline. A letter is best, but Arizona Courts say email or text can count if you can prove it was sent and received. Keep a copy. The courts' self-service center has a notice form and instructions.
  2. Write down indoor temperatures (with date and time), take photos, and keep every receipt.
  3. Know your local standard. Phoenix and Tucson: AC must cool every room to 82°F or below, evaporative coolers to 86°F. Tempe: 82°F for AC, 88°F for evaporative. Measured 3 feet above the floor in the middle of the room.

If the landlord doesn't fix it in time

After written notice, if the repair isn't made in a reasonable time, A.R.S. 33-1364 lets you choose one of these:

  • Buy reasonable cooling (for example fans or a window AC) and deduct the actual, reasonable cost from rent.
  • Recover damages for the reduced value of the home.
  • Get substitute housing (like a hotel). You don't owe rent for those days, and you may recover up to 25% more of the rent for those days; more if the landlord's failure is deliberate.

Keep receipts. These remedies don't apply if you, your family, or a guest caused the problem. Don't simply withhold rent without following the law. Landlords may not shut off utilities to punish a tenant, even if rent is late (Arizona Attorney General). This is general information, not legal advice.

Free help for renters

6. Help paying for repairs and bills, and checking on neighbors

City of Phoenix Weatherization

Free, income-qualified program for Phoenix homeowners and renters. It can include repair or replacement of heating and cooling equipment after a home assessment. 602-534-4444 · Details

Maricopa County Emergency Home Repair

For low- to moderate-income homeowners (up to 80% of area median income), mainly for broken AC and heating. Covers many communities outside the big cities (not Phoenix, Mesa, Chandler, Glendale, Tempe and others; county islands qualify). 602-506-0589 · Details

Healthy Homes AC Program

Nonprofit AllThrive365 repairs or replaces AC at no cost for eligible metro Phoenix homeowners, focused on older adults and people with disabilities, funded by local utilities (KJZZ, July 2026). allthrive365.org

Energy bills: LIHEAP

Arizona DES helps eligible households pay cooling bills, with extra crisis help if you have a shut-off notice. des.az.gov/liheap · 1-866-494-1981

APS & SRP

APS Crisis Bill Assistance helps with a bill during a temporary hardship, through local community agencies. SRP lists its financial assistance options. Ask about medical-need programs if someone depends on cooling or medical equipment.

Not sure where to start?

Dial 211 and ask for "AC repair assistance" and "utility assistance" in your city. Many cities and community action agencies run their own programs.

Check on neighbors, twice a day during heat waves. In 2025, 48% of indoor heat deaths in Maricopa County were found during a welfare check, when someone was called to check on the person. Knock on the doors of older neighbors and people who live alone, especially in mobile home and RV parks. If someone is confused or very hot, call 911. More in Check on neighbors and Community.

7. Pets

  • Take pets with you if you can, or keep them in the coolest room with plenty of fresh water. Many cooling centers only allow service animals, so call ahead or plan a pet-friendly friend's home.
  • Cool damp towels, a cooling mat, or a shallow tub of cool water help. No walks on hot pavement.
  • Heatstroke signs in pets: heavy panting, glazed eyes, drooling, red gums or tongue, vomiting, weakness, collapse. Move the pet somewhere cool, wet it with cool (not ice-cold) water, and call a veterinarian right away.
  • Never leave a pet in a parked car, even for a minute.

Sources: Maricopa County pet heat safety tips; Arizona Humane Society.

Sources

  1. Maricopa County Department of Public Health, 2025 Heat-Related Deaths Report (April 2026): indoor deaths, AC presence and failure, mobile homes, age, welfare checks.
  2. CDC, About Heat and Your Health (fans only below 90°F; heat illness) and Heat and People without Air Conditioning.
  3. US EPA, Extreme Heat and Indoor Air Quality (fan safety).
  4. National Weather Service Phoenix, heat safety and HeatRisk forecasts.
  5. Maricopa Association of Governments, Heat Relief Network map; Maricopa County, Extreme Heat.
  6. Arizona Revised Statutes 33-1324 (landlord obligations) and 33-1364 (failure to supply air conditioning or cooling).
  7. Arizona Judicial Branch, Air Conditioning (A/C) Issues and What to do if your A/C is broken.
  8. Arizona Attorney General, landlord AC obligations.
  9. Phoenix City Code 39-5; Tucson City Code 16-11; Tempe City Code 21-34.
  10. City of Phoenix, Landlord and Tenant Rights and Weatherization Assistance Program.
  11. Maricopa County Human Services, Emergency Home Repair; Arizona DES, LIHEAP; APS Crisis Bill Assistance; SRP financial assistance; KJZZ, Healthy Homes AC Program (July 2026).
  12. Carrier, AC unit not turning on: troubleshooting (homeowner checks).

Checked October 11, 2026. Programs, phone numbers and funding change; call to confirm.