School districts across Southern California are taking steps to protect students ahead of a blast of extreme heat that will hit the region this week.
The Hart School District in the Santa Clarita Valley told KTLA Monday that it will shift afternoon sports practices to mornings and postpone some school events. Recess will also be moved indoors.
Taft High School in Woodland Hills has postponed a tennis match and cross-country meet and replaced some malfunctioning air conditioners.
“The (Los Angeles Unified School) district sent us the portables. Contractors were out here working on the systems, and we had all the rooms up within (24 hours),” Taft principal Daniel Steiner said.
Temperatures are expected to climb into the mid-and-upper 90s across the Los Angeles area by midweek, and then soar even higher into triple digits by Sunday.
The National Weather Service has issued Excessive Heat Warnings for the Southland.
Functional air conditioning, however, is not universal in schools.
At Valencia High School in Santa Clarita Monday, the volleyball team practiced in a gym that lacked climate control.
“It’s awful just as a spectator,” parent Kristin Degard said. “It’s difficult hard for [the athletes] to breathe.”
LAUSD is reminding teachers to be on alert for students showing symptoms of heat stress and is also instructing teachers to limit or modify their physical activities. The district also announced it is bringing in portable water misting systems.
“We hear you, parents – it’s too hot,” said Nick Melvoin, Vice President of the LAUSD Board of Education. “We need to make sure kids are indoors, or when they’re outdoors we have water and shade, and we’re doing all we can to get ready for this week.”
