HOUSTON — Students at Pugh Elementary School in East Houston faced classroom temperatures approaching 90 degrees this week as the campus struggled with air-conditioning problems, according to a local news report.
KPRC 2 reported Wednesday night that a photograph supplied by a source showed a classroom thermostat reading 89 degrees. The station said some students called their parents Tuesday and asked to be picked up because of the heat.
Sources told the station that classrooms across the campus were having cooling problems while the main building containing administrative offices remained cool. Work crews were reported to be inspecting the system, but no timetable for a complete repair was available.
Houston Independent School District had not responded to KPRC’s questions about Pugh Elementary by the time the report was updated at 9:12 p.m. Wednesday.
The incident adds to a wider pattern of heating, ventilation and air-conditioning trouble across HISD. KPRC reported last week that teachers at multiple campuses were using small fans as classroom temperatures reached about 80 degrees. In a statement about those broader complaints, the district said aging HVAC systems at many campuses require frequent attention and that maintenance teams were checking conditions and deploying portable cooling units where needed.
Pugh Elementary has faced cooling issues before. KPRC has reported on air-conditioning trouble at the East Houston campus during previous school years, including periods when outdoor temperatures placed added pressure on older equipment.
The district’s temperature standard also remains unclear. Two years ago, Superintendent Mike Miles said 82 degrees would be considered too hot for a classroom. KPRC asked whether that benchmark still applies, but the district had not answered by publication time.
For families, the concern reaches beyond comfort. Excessive classroom heat can make it harder for students to concentrate and may pose a greater risk to young children or students with health conditions. Families also face disruptions when parents must leave work or rearrange transportation to pick up children early.
The situation is especially important in communities where parents may have limited flexibility to miss work and where school buildings depend on aging mechanical systems. Reliable air conditioning is a basic operational need in Houston, where warm weather can continue well into the fall.
Pugh Elementary’s website lists the campus at 1147 Kress Street. Families seeking current information about classroom conditions or repairs should contact the campus directly at 713-671-3820.
As of Thursday morning, HISD had not publicly announced when the Pugh system would be fully restored. The latest episode is likely to intensify calls from parents and educators for clearer temperature standards, faster communication and long-term investment in campus cooling systems.
