Hot weather affecting food truck workers, those enjoying outdoor activities
AUSTIN, Texas - While some people may be staying inside because of the high temperatures, others are still enjoying outdoor activities.
Some cooled off at Lady Bird Lake, but it wasn't packed.
"It's hot. Staying cool by getting in this nice cool water. I would suggest every Texan do this too. It's a glorious time to be outside, and it's hot!" Izzy Garza said.
"We met up with a group of friends out here and all of our kids and jumped in the ice-cold river, wish I could be at the beach, wish I was in Hawaii, but we're here and loving it and just going to enjoy a day of getting refreshed," Todd Casselberry said.
Some like the heat, others want it to cool down a bit.
'It's okay for a couple days, but I think we need a little rain," Casselberry said.
"In this weather, we can take off our shirts, run around, get active, so I love it," Ronen Melloul said.
Over on Barton Springs Road, people tried to stay cool in the shade while enjoying food trucks.
"Wearing this [hat], because I'm about to melt, and trying to find as much shade as possible, and drinking tons of water," Kristen Harris said.
"Can't pass up the food options," Vernon Harris said. "Luckily, we saw the shade and the trucks so that helps out."
"It's really hot, but we're trying not to let that deter us from exploring and enjoying, and then just going inside whenever we can," Kristen said.
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Pamela Littlejohn is the general manager of Holla Mode, a Thai-style ice cream trailer.
"It's ridiculous," she says about working in a food trailer in the heat. "A lot of the system of the air conditioning units are on the outside or up on top. When I get a bunch of people in a trailer and then also everything in the trailer from the machines, it's hot as anything."
She says they do what they can to stay cool and ensures her staff says hydrated.
"It's just the heat is brutal. It takes a toll on my staff. It takes a toll on the trailer. Obviously, it's a metal trailer, so it holds in the heat, and we try and cool it off as much as possible," she said.
Littlejohn says the heat does affect the business.
"Our numbers are a little off right now, because people don't want to stand out there, which I understand, but they still support us through everything which is amazing," she said.
However, they continue to move forward despite the challenge.
"I've been up and going through COVID, I've been up and going through Snow-pocalypse. I've kept everything up and going. Right now we're still up and going, but it's just a little bit more of a struggle," she said. "I want people to make sure that they come out and see us. I mean, if we do have a little bit of a wait, then we get through it as quick as we can."