School districts across the San Antonio area are draining chillers, wrapping pipes and preparing to run HVAC systems in preparation for next week’s frigid forecast, even with Monday being the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday.
Horticulture students in the Southside Independent School District are also taking steps to protect plants, including those in a green house, from the sub-freezing temperatures, which are expected to begin Sunday morning, according to the National Weather Service, putting highs in the 30s and lows in the teens and 20s.
Freezing temperatures are expected through at least Tuesday.
Winter weather has been costly to area districts in the past, including damages topping more than $1.5 million at North East Independent School District campuses during winter storm Uri, which gripped the state in unusually cold temperatures for days and exposed vulnerabilities in the state’s electrical grid.
But leaders expressed confidence this week, including CPS Energy President and CEO Rudy Garza, who said Wednesday that he believes Texas is ready for the impending weather.
Barry Perez, a spokesperson for the Northside Independent School District, said maintenance crews are double-checking pipes throughout the region’s largest school system to make sure they are in good condition.
“As always, we will have crews ready to be dispatched even through the weekend to address any localized issues,” he said. “Were we to get any precipitation, we are also prepared to dispatch crews with deicing salt where needed (exterior steps, ramps, etc).”
Northside and other area districts and higher education institutions told the San Antonio Report that any changes in response to the weather would be communicated “as soon as possible and would be announced via our website, our social media, through our call out system and by local media,” Perez said.
Both North East and Northside ISDs said they do not delay start times, given the logistical challenges related to the size of the districts, and instead would cancel classes if weather were a factor.
The San Antonio Independent School District communicated with all campuses its cold weather plan, which includes having facilities managers on hand to triage all work requests that come in to ensure priority issues are addressed.
Environmental teams also will have dehumidifiers prepared and ready in case of water releases, according to the plans, which were reviewed by the Report.
Cold weather is still in the forecast when students return on Tuesday, but schools are planning to return to normal operations, including IDEA Public School campuses.
Students may have altered schedules depending on how chilly it is outside on the day.
At the Alamo Heights Independent School District, for example, principals are advised to use their discretion and good judgment as to whether or not students will go outside, as well as the duration of the outside activity, according to a spokeswoman.
“Generally, we have increased precautions when temperatures reach below 40 degrees, including the wind chill factor, and when the combined temperature and wind chill fall below 35 degrees,” she said.
