MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Several schools in Memphis were closed due to problems with their heating systems Tuesday, while students at a DeSoto County school had to be moved to another part of the building because of the cold.
Georgian Hills Achievement Elementary and Frayser Corning Achievement Elementary in Memphis were closed due to the heat being out in the building. Oak Forest Elementary School and Westwood High School also closed early due to complications with the heating units.
On Tuesday evening, officials said Georgian Hills and Frayser Corning Elementary will be closed on Wednesday.
Shelby County Schools says the malfunctions were unexpected. The heating systems at both schools couldn’t handle the extreme drop in temperature, but a lot of parents and students say that’s not a good excuse.
“When I first walked in the building, I was like, it’s too cold to be like in school like this,” said Westwood High School student Kameron Johnson.
He and his classmates had to stick it out in the cold while crews tried to fix the problem. Students were finally dismissed early at 12:30.
Johnson’s father said dismissal should’ve been earlier.
“You could be sick for one thing, you could get the flu,” he said. “How can you learn? You can’t concentrate on learning, you can’t.”
According to Desoto County Schools, school administrators at Southaven Middle arrived at school early Tuesday morning to find that the building’s heating unit had malfunctioned. Seventh graders were moved to the gym while eighth graders were taken to the high school gym until the problem could be fixed.
Throughout the day, other parents have called WREG describing issues at both Westwood High School and Corner Stone Prep. Corner Stone Prep confirmed to WREG they had issues with heating Tuesday but said they have since been fixed.
Westwood High School will be closed on Wednesday after officials say they “discovered further complications with the heating system due to the extreme cold.” Crews will be working throughout the day to make repairs.
