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Winter Woes: Schools shut down over broken pipes, no heat

Posted at 5:06 PM, Jan 03, 2018
and last updated 2018-01-03 18:11:15-05

MILWAUKEE - Things should be warm again by Thursday morning at Forest Home Elementary, but their first day back from winter break Wednesday got off to a rocky start.

The students were rushed to South Division High School because they had no heat. The culprit was a damaged pipe that stopped the boiler from working.

One grandmother told TODAY'S TMJ4 she felt something was not right with the heat at Forest Home Elementary as soon as she dropped off her grandson, Jackson.

"It felt like an icebox! It was like some levels did seem warmer than others, but when you went to the second floor, it was really cold up there," said Sheryl Deleon.

Forest Home Elementary at South 15th Place and West Forest Home Avenue was not the only school dealing with winter woes.

On what was supposed to be Next Door's first day back, not one, but two of their locations suffered water damage.

Burst pipes were to blame at their North 29th Street Location and the sprinklers went off inside their building on Capitol Drive.

"Our crews were on it right away," said Max Seigle of Next Door. "As an example of how hard they have been working, they were at this site here on Capitol Drive until two in the morning."

They plan to have school start next Monday to serve the families in our community.

"Many of the children we serve come from families living in poverty, so coming to a place like next door is an invaluable experience for them we work with children from birth to five years old because those years are such a critical period of brain development," Seigle said.

To learn more about Next Door, click here.