SHAFTER - Triple digit temperatures forced officials at Maple Elementary School to send students home early Tuesday. The temperature inside the classroom isn't much different from the temperature outside, because the school doesn't have air conditioners. Instead, it uses evaporative coolers, also known as swamp coolers, that sit on top of each of the ten classrooms. When humidity is high, school officials say they don't work.
"This is the vent. If you put your hand there, it's not a lot of air and it's not cold at all," said Director of Maintenance Operations, John Campbell.
The coolers work by sucking in outside air and sending it through a wet cloth that is moistened by a continuous water filter. Then the air is blown into the classroom.
"It's not fresh water getting pumped in," said Campbell. "It's circulating that water, so water eventually gets warm and so it's recycling warm water."
Students and teachers say the coolers were only adding to the humidity and Monday was too hot to be at school.
"I actually didn't want to go outside because it was too hot and I got really sweaty and I thought I'd panic," said student Bella Avias.
Parents were called early Tuesday morning to pick their children up from school an hour and 45 minutes early.
Maple Elementary School's principal said the school applied for a state modernization grant, but was told the funding ran out.
It's on the ballot in November.
"This is the vent. If you put your hand there, it's not a lot of air and it's not cold at all," said Director of Maintenance Operations, John Campbell.
The coolers work by sucking in outside air and sending it through a wet cloth that is moistened by a continuous water filter. Then the air is blown into the classroom.
"It's not fresh water getting pumped in," said Campbell. "It's circulating that water, so water eventually gets warm and so it's recycling warm water."
Students and teachers say the coolers were only adding to the humidity and Monday was too hot to be at school.
"I actually didn't want to go outside because it was too hot and I got really sweaty and I thought I'd panic," said student Bella Avias.
Parents were called early Tuesday morning to pick their children up from school an hour and 45 minutes early.
Maple Elementary School's principal said the school applied for a state modernization grant, but was told the funding ran out.
It's on the ballot in November.