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What you need to know about subzero temperatures

It sure is bone-chillingly cold outside!

As temperatures have plummeted to the coldest of the season, Lisa Johnson, vice president of public relations and marketing for Blue Mountain Health System gave tips for staying safe.Johnson said the elderly, as well as young children, especially need to watch for hypothermia and frostbite."The elderly need to make sure they're eating well, and try not to drink a lot of caffeine or alcohol, but do things like drinking warm broth," Johnson said."In particular, babies need to be able to maintain a constant body temperature, because they can't shiver like adults can, so it's really important that they try to maintain an even body heat."If rooms are cold, Johnson said to put towels or blankets at the bottoms of doors or windows that have drafts.Anyone who has to work or be outside for an extended period of time really has to watch for frostbite, which can occur in as little as 15 minutes in these types of weather conditions, Johnson said."How you recognize it is your skin gets white or grayish-yellow looking, of course you have numbness, and also the skin gets really unusually hard or like a waxy feel to it," she said."Get them into a warm room quickly, and do not run (hands, fingers, etc.) in hot water; it should be lukewarm because you can cause damage if you put it under hot water."Continue to warm the area slowly, and don't rub, as it could cause more damage."Don't use a heating pad, just warm it slowly, because the skin is numb, you can't feel it, and can burn yourself," she said.People with breathing issues such as asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, should always cover their nose and mouth, and try to breathe through their nose if they can because it warms the air before it goes into the lungs, Johnson said.Those who use oxygen should put their oxygen tank under their coat closer to their body, Johnson said.

DONALD R. SERFASS/TIMES NEWS Tony Fannock of Tamaqua plows parking spaces on East Broad Street near the ABC Tamaqua Hi-Rise building at 8 a.m. Sunday morning as the mercury hovered at 1 degree. "I don't mind it until the wind blows," said Fannock, who spent his Valentine's Day outdoors. Some good news: Spring is just over one month away.