In the midst of the heat wave that is going through the country, the Buenos Aires Minister of Health, Fernan Quirosand the Minister of Education of CABA, Soledad Acuna, expressed themselves about the possibility of suspending classes in the face of the heat wave. Quirós considered that classes should not be suspended since if they “are from children between 7 and 15 years old, they have perfect conditions to tolerate heat.” However, he stressed the importance of minors being “in the shade, in a ventilated space, with access to liquid and if they have better cooling.”
Likewise, the minister emphasized the importance of hydration, especially “the smallest and those who cannot express that they are thirsty, those under two years of age, and the elderly, especially those who are disconnected from reality or who have certain degrees of mental disorders.” “It is important to offer them water permanently, because they do not have the capacity to request it, and that they rehydrate. You have to eat very lightly, eat a lot of vegetables and fruits, and try to avoid heavy meals and lastly be as much as possible in the shade”; explained the official in radio statements to Delta 90.3.
For his part, Soledad Acuna I consider that “You have to have classes and hold them in the best possible conditions”. “We have to make an effort. It’s just a few days, we know we’re suffering from all this heat, but in all the schools we’re trying to create the best conditions. In state-run schools we have two fans per classroom; we are generating additional hydration bringing fresh water to all schools, we have already sent suggestions to families so that children wear light clothes, we are regulating outdoor physical activities. We are convinced that every day of school is worth it, that it makes a difference, and that it is an opportunity that we cannot miss”, explained the minister in dialogue with “El Disparador”.
Recently, due to the heat wave, the Teachers Association of the City of Buenos Aires (Ademys) accused the Buenos Aires administration of just providing a bottle of water to the students instead of conditioning the classrooms. It’s a statement, the union demanded late on Sunday that classes be suspended “Given the lack of conditions and the announcement of temperatures that will be around 40 and 44 degrees,” according to the statement released on social networks.
The heat wave, the ninth so far in 2023, impacted 12 towns in the center of the country between March 28 and 7, and the most affected area was the north of the province of Buenos Aires, which registered between 8 and Average maximum temperature 10 degrees above normal, something exceptional for the beginning of March. According to him The National Weather ServiceArgentina crosses hottest summer since 1961and last month was also the second driest February, with 41.9% less rain than average.
The Autonomous City of Buenos Aires is now on red alert and registered on Saturday March 11 38.6 degrees at 2:00 p.m., which became the highest temperature in 117 years for this time of year. The heat persisted on Saturday night as although the temperature dropped to 32 degrees at 22, the wind chill was 35.9 degrees.
The SMN also indicated that for the first time in history, the City exceeded the maximum temperature threshold for a heat wave (32.3 °C) for 12 consecutive days, and emphasized that “it is the second time in the month that (CABA) reaches the absolute record for March”. Already on March 2, the city had reached 38 degrees, surpassing the historical mark of 37.9 of March 7, 1952. Meanwhile, this Sunday the Federal Capital exceeded 38 degrees of thermal sensation, as reported by the SMN in its daily ranking.
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