Code Blue Alert In Baltimore Through Weekend

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- With temperatures predicted to fall into the teens with wind chill this weekend, Baltimore City Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen has issued a Code Blue declaration for Baltimore City beginning tonight.

It will expire Monday morning. This is the second Code Blue alert for Baltimore this season.

"With dangerously cold temperatures expected in Baltimore this weekend, I am issuing a Code Blue Declaration beginning late tonight through Monday morning and encourage residents to stay indoors," said Wen says.

"Extreme cold temperatures can permanently injure, or even kill. Hypothermia, or low body temperature, can be just as dangerous as extreme heat, so it is important to stay indoors in heated areas. Please be sure to check on your elderly neighbors to ensure that they have heat and power this weekend."

Code Blue is a multi-agency effort to reduce hypothermia deaths this winter by protecting vulnerable populations from extreme cold weather. The Health Commissioner may declare a Code Blue alert when temperatures, including wind chill, are expected to be 13˚F or below or when other conditions are severe enough to present a substantial threat to the life or health of vulnerable Baltimore citizens.

Follow @CBSBaltimore on Twitter and like WJZ-TV | CBS Baltimore on Facebook