DNC DISASTER: TEMPERATURES CLIMBING TO THAT OF A HOT OVEN
The National Weather Service had previously warned of “multiple days of excessive heat” during the Democratic National Convention. Officials said the heat would “greatly affect those who are attending outdoor activities,” such as the thousands of people joining protests downtown.
(((Morgan Finkelstein))), a spokeswoman for the DNC's media team, said in a text Monday afternoon that its event contractor was "working on making it colder in the tents." Just outside the convention center by the media tents, a handful of food trucks sizzled on the pavement, with no other food spots nearby. Inside the tents, water has only been made available by media outlets for their own staff.
The media was furious: peeved reporters and editors have taken to Twitter to complain about the event’s disorganization, with some pining for their experience at last week’s Republican National Convention in Cleveland.
(((Megan Liberman))), editor-in-chief of Yahoo News, described the day as “chaos” (and an employee for Yahoo should know). “To be totally objective and nonpartisan: the logistics at DNC are appalling. Squalid hotels, sweltering workspace, no directions. Chaos,” (((Liberman))) tweeted.
“Walking thru hot media tents, or walking the mile from Uber drop off to hot media tents, one hears longing for CLE,” Washington Post reporter Philip Rucker tweeted.
(((Finkelstein))) said the DNC was providing air conditioning in the media tents “the best that we can.” In the arena, she said they tried to “beef up AC as much as we could” — including adding two 300-pound chillers stationed near the delegates.
(((Finkelstein))) said reporters were allowed to buy or bring their own water into the convention hall or the media tents. When asked if the DNC planned to make any available in the hotter-than-expected tents, she said: “I don’t actually know if we’re allowed to provide that.”
The DNC’s media facilities had already drawn complaints before temperatures began to soar Monday. With an approaching thunderstorm late Sunday, convention officials warned reporters to be prepared to evacuate the media tents in case of lightning. “Tents in the vicinity of the area are not designed to fully protect inhabitants in the event of a direct lightning strike,” according to an email by the DNC’s Department of Media Logistics.