By Elesha George
A corporate citizen is helping students battle the sweltering heat by donating piles of fans to a number of schools as a rise in temperatures is felt across Antigua.
Although the latest heatwave warning expired on Monday, the weather remains warm enough to cause children to become dehydrated and distracted.
In an effort to beat the heat, on Tuesday morning, Maurice Belgrave and his wife Adalia donated about 20 standing fans to schools including the Cobbs Cross Primary, All Saints Secondary, Liberta Primary and Newfield Primary.
The Belgraves also intend to donate fans to the Potters Primary School.
The couple, who are regular donors to local schools, are entrepreneurs who own a commercial dive company – Maurice Underwater Services – as well as Bubblez Taxi and Tours out of English Harbour.
They told Observer that when their daughter and her friends came home complaining about the heat they knew they had to do something to assist.
“It’s hot, they can’t even function, they can’t even think straight because of the heat,” Adalia said.
Their daughter’s friends, who Maurice considers his “bonus children”, were complaining that the school was too hot.
“I sat there and I listened to their cries when they’re talking and I find that place in my heart, and I spoke to Adalia and I said, we’re going to get 10 fans for the school,” Maurice explained.
He also tried to engage others to help but said he received no immediate response and decided to purchase the much-needed equipment himself.
The country has been experiencing persistent heatwaves in recent months, with temperatures rising as high as 36 degrees Celsius (96.8 Fahrenheit) last Thursday. That was the hottest day measured so far this month, according to Dale Destin, Director of the Antigua and Barbuda Meteorological Services.
Noella Leadette-Josiah, Deputy Principal at Cobbs Cross Primary, described September 8 as the hottest she has ever felt in all her years as an educator.
“It has been awful; it has been very, very, very hot. We’ve had students who have been sweating. Particularly in my class, I can attest that the students were sweating and they even have little bumps from the sweating and so we’re really try our best to keep them cool,” she explained.
Leadette-Josiah, who was very appreciative of the Belgraves’ donation, remembered times when teachers attempted to instruct lessons under a tree but the heat became unbearable without enough wind to cool them off.
“We’ve even tried to caution them not to play and run around too much in the heat because we know of the effects of it,” she stated.
The Belgraves’ initiative complements the efforts of other residents who are donating fans as part of a nationwide campaign inspired by Tanya Stevens, a grade six science teacher at Pigotts Primary.
Stevens’ initiative was picked up by Facebook group ‘Pineapple Express 268’ which launched the campaign #schoolsfandrive to encourage kind-hearted members of the public to lend a hand.
Schools across Antigua have posted a tally of the number of fans they need and, collectively, the wish-list collated tops 800.
Meanwhile, Director of Education Clare Browne has welcomed the community’s assistance but cautioned against the use of too many fans without adequate monitoring.
He told Observer recently that schools would have to be properly checked to ensure they can carry the extra load that an increased number of fans would require, warning that some schools may have to undergo major rewiring.
He added that timers would also have to be placed on the fans, as a fan left on overnight, through human error, could cause a fire that could potentially destroy school buildings.