Puerto Rico’s public schools clamor for air conditioning to get relief from record-breaking heat

By DÁNICA COTO
Associated Press

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Students and teachers are sweltering in public schools across Puerto Rico and demanding that the government install air conditioners as the U.S. Caribbean territory bakes under record heat this year. But the island’s governor quietly vetoed a bill last month that would authorize the installation of cooling systems in a move that outraged many. The island’s Department of Education has taken steps including allowing students to wear Bermuda shorts as it considers modifying schedules to cooler hours. The measures have appeased few as heat advisories for the island become the norm as Puerto Rico’s government struggles to respond to the effects of climate change.