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Friday, July 30, 1999
By TONY ZIEBOL Journal Staff Writer NEW ULM -- Driving by local banks Thursday afternoon, you could read the temperature in triple digits. At the TCF Bank, it was listed at 101 degrees. At the Alliance Bank, it read 105 (It registered 95 at the airport). Whatever the temperature was, it felt hot. Really hot. According to the National Weather Service, the high humidity made it feel like it was 105 to 112. It was even too warm to venture to the city's pools. "It's so hot out there, there's not as many people (swimming),' said Jim Kraft of the Park and Recreation Department. "Actually the numbers are down." Somewhat surprisingly, though, area hospitals reported no out of the ordinary heat-related problems and a plant operator at the city's utilities department said there were no major problems with power. However, the city of St. Peter issued a "Peak Energy Alert" and asked residents to refrain from using all major appliances besides air conditioners. The Municipal pool was free for the day and a sprinkler system was setup on the south side of Minnesota Square Park for people to cool off under. The bicycle ride for multiple sclerosis was temporarily stopped. Riders were pulled off yesterday's route from New Ulm to New Prague and were taken to an overnight camping site. Regular citizens may have been inconvenience by the weather, but some area businesses prospered from the heat. It was a good day to be in the air conditioning business. Mary Nilson, of Nilson Heating & Air Conditioning, was one prosperous recipient. She said a lot of people who survived hot weather in the past by opening windows and using other methods gave in. "The heat has really helped the business," Nilson said. "Now they're saying, 'I can't take it. I gotta get a (air conditioning) unit. Even the tough, die-hard Germans are breaking down." Nilson's supplier had 75 units in stock Wednesday morning and now has about 10 left. "He's doing cartwheels," she said. Rosie Osmonson of Osmonson Heating and Air Conditioning, Inc. also said business has been up the last few days. "Yes, we've been extremely busy this week," she said. Owners and their vehicles also flocked to automobile services, for repairs due to the heat and to get that long-overdue air conditioning work done. John Hamann of North Side Garage & Alignment was busy with the latter. "Everybody who didn't get their air conditioning fixed is getting it done now," he said.
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