Misawa to close schools early Tuesday as Japan simmers
MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan — Students will again be released two hours early on Tuesday in an effort to beat the afternoon heat.
Misawa schools released students two hours early Friday.
Department of Defense Dependents Schools personnel, base leadership and the medical command are working together to closely monitor the situation, according to DODDS-Pacific spokesman Charly Hoff.
With high temperatures and no air conditioning in the majority of classrooms, there have been reports of students and faculty feeling faint or nauseated, Hoff said in an e-mail. The only areas that are air-conditioned, he said, are the computer labs and computer server rooms.
“The early closures are proactive measures to ensure student and staff safety,” Hoff said.
Officials with the Aomori Meteorological Observatory said the Misawa area can expect continued heat next week, with highs near 90 degrees.
An official from the observatory said Friday that high-pressure systems over the Pacific Ocean have been the cause of the hotter-than-usual summer.
On Thursday, the Japan Times reported that this is the hottest summer in Japan since the country starting tracking temperatures in 1898.
The students will be released at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, about the same time they were released on Friday.
Stars and Stripes reporter Hana Kusumoto contributed to this story.
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