Lack of heating forces students to warm up outdoors

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Some elementary schools in north China’s Hebei Province have been without seasonal heating even though temperatures have plunged below zero.

The unbelievable situation forced classes in Quyang county to move outdoors so that students can warm themselves when there is sunshine or by running about, China Youth Daily reported on Tuesday.

Authorities said they were working to install makeshift heating facilities.

The paper said that over ten schools in the county were not connected with the heating system, though regions and cities in north China had started to hook up to the grid in mid-November. Some parents were quoted as saying that that they had found cold injuries on their children’s feet.

Students in a primary school in Quyang county reading on the playground /Screenshot

Officials from the local education department explained that the county was transforming its coal-generated heating to a more environmentally-friendly electric heating method. But some schools were not heated because of shortage instruments needed for the modification

Students have class outside in the sunshine. /Screenshot

According to China Youth Daily, the Quyang Education Bureau began the project upgrade in mid-October, just a month ahead of the official start of the heating season. However, public doubts emerged that the work could be finished up in such a short period.

On publication of the report, Quyang county authorities on Tuesday carried out an investigation and ordered the 11 unconnected schools to use some makeshift ways of heating, like placing a heating stove inside classrooms.

Students wear hand warmers. /Screenshot

The provincial education department of Hebei has also begun to inspect the heating and safety conditions in all schools.

According to the China Youth Daily, seven schools had been provided with heating by Tuesday afternoon.

Striving for a clear sky, the government of Hebei Province is upgrading its heating method. According to the statistics provided by Xinhua, 147,000 households and 2,280 enterprises and educational institutions have been linked up with electric heating, contributing to a drop of carbon dioxide by around 1.18 tons.

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