MATTHEWS, N.C. — As the heat wave continues across the Carolinas, some elementary school students have been inside their classrooms without air conditioning.
A mechanical issue with the HVAC system at Matthews Elementary School caused temperatures to rise inside the school on Friday.
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"It's like standing right in front of the sun," said fourth grader Hayden Bartlett.
Students said the issue has been going on for the past few days.
The school sent out an email to parents on Friday, saying: "Your students may report that their class was unusually warm during the day today. Please know that we have notified the appropriate maintenance personnel and are working with the CMS facilities and maintenance departments to correct these problems."
Parents and students said to help with the issue, teachers turned off the lights, used fans and opened the windows.
Students said the heat was brutal.
"One of the lunch monitors came and brought us a fan, and it still didn't help," said Bartlett. "And I have asthma."
The school's memo to parents said they hope to have the issue fixed by Monday.