How Aklan LGU’s decides on the suspension of classes due to extreme heat

KALIBO, Aklan- At least five of the 17 towns in the province have publicly taken the initiative to urge both public and private schools to suspend classes in cases of extreme heat.

Last week, Kalibo Mayor Juris Bautista-Sucro released Executive Order No. 032, declaring the suspension of half-day classes in both public and private preschools to senior high school. Sucro urged the schools to have classes in the morning and shift into online modes in the afternoon.

“This will take effect from April 8 to April 30 unless otherwise extended or lifted earlier,” said Sucro. Similar EO was also released by the local government of Altavas.

Lezo Mayor Mary Lenette Fernandez also came out with an executive order number 10 series of 2024, for implementing modified school schedules and adopting alternative delivery modes of teaching due to extreme heat. Fernandez said that the EO will start on April 8 until further notice.

The towns of Ibajay and Numancia, meanwhile,have empowered the respective school heads in their areas to decide on the suspension of classes. “I met with the school heads (in our town) and we agreed that we will follow the DepEd Order 037 issued in 2022, which provides guidelines on the cancellation of classes or work in schools in the event of natural disasters, power outages, interruptions, and other calamities,” Numancia Mayor Jeserel Templonuevo told the BINN on April 8.

According to the PAGASA weekly forecast, the province of Aklan has an outlook of 27–33 degrees Celsius from April 8 until April 12.