HOUSTON – Students at a Houston ISD elementary school were sweltering in near 90-degree classrooms Tuesday.
Sources reached out to KPRC 2 News saying classrooms at Pugh Elementary School in East Houston nearly reached 90 degrees. A photo of a classroom thermostat shared with KPRC 2 shows a temperature reading of 89 degrees. Some students called their parents to come pick them up because of the heat.
Sources say all classrooms were struggling with air conditioning, while the main building housing administrative offices remained cool.
Work crews are reportedly on site checking the air conditioning system. However, it is unclear when the issue will be fully resolved.
This is not the first time Pugh Elementary has made headlines for HVAC problems. KPRC 2 News has reported on air conditioning issues at the school for the past couple of years.
Two years ago, Superintendent Mike Miles said a classroom temperature of 82 degrees would be considered too hot. KPRC 2 News asked HISD whether that threshold still stands, the district had not responded at the time of publication.
Just last week, KPRC 2 reported on hot classrooms across multiple HISD campuses, where teachers were using mini fans to try to keep students cool. At that time, HISD released a statement saying the problem is not a simple fix.
HISD says this is not a simple fix. The district told KPRC2 in a statement many campuses have aging HVAC systems that require frequent attention. District teams are actively checking conditions and addressing HVAC issues, including deploying spot coolers where needed.
KPRC 2 News reached out to HISD for comment on the situation at Pugh Elementary. The district had not responded at the time of publication.
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