Some students at the southwest side school had to be moved to other areas of the building after the HVAC issues were resolved.
SAN ANTONIO – This week's freezing San Antonio air was felt in parts of Highlands High School on Tuesday as students returned from vacation and some of them reunited in frigid classrooms.
Photos shared by a parent appeared to show thermometer readings of 52.5, 53 and 54 degrees at the Southeast San Antonio ISD facility. Lorraine Pulido, a spokeswoman for the district, confirmed that staff responded to “a mechanical issue” involving an HVAC system at Highlands, adding that the repairs were made around 7 a.m
“The building warmed up afterward,” Pulido said. “However, it took some time due to the size of the building. The school implemented its remediation plan to relocate students as needed.”
This consisted of moving students to other areas of the school that were not affected by the heating problems.
San Antonio reached a high of just 50 degrees on Tuesday, while South Texas is looking at a week of cold air and icy conditions in 2025. Precipitation is expected Wednesday night, including the possibility of freezing rain in the Alamo City and Hill Country.
The heating problems at Highlands came a day after SAISD Superintendent Jaime Aquino promised that the district's infrastructure would be ready for winter weather and nearly a year after widespread boiler system failures closed nearly all schools because of the freezing weather.
Daytime highs are not expected to get warmer than the mid 40s for the remainder of this week, while overnight lows will dip into the mid 30s. Temperatures of up to 29 degrees are expected on Friday evening.