The wind is expected to go back to a northerly overnight and temperatures will go back up. The lack of air-conditioning in many schools is a continuing subject of debate that comes to the fore on days like yesterday. A spokesman for Education Minister Mary Delahunty said air-conditioning in permanent schools was a matter for each school community to decide. The president of the Victorian Secondary Principals' Association, Ted Drierey, said school councils were forced to raise funds and spend large sums on cooling for schools. This is a perennial problem with successive state governments.
Nothing changes from year to year.
Attendance levels at schools in yesterday's 36.9-degree heat varied dramatically. Victorians responded to yesterday's heatwave by switching on air-conditioners and fans in unprecedented numbers, leading to record levels of electricity consumption. The state's electricity consumption peaked at around 8089 megawatts yesterday afternoon, an all-time high. However, the system as a whole managed to keep up with the demand. In South Australia, the reserve level was breached for two 30-minute periods.