White Cliffs is cool when the mercury rises
January 21, 2003
Feeling the heat of Summer? Spare a thought for when the students of White Cliffs Public School return to school in 2003. The town in far western NSW regularly top scores the State's highest temperatures.
White Cliffs Public School Principal, Elise Dell, admits that even though her students grow up with the heat, when the mercury climbs into the high 40s they still feel quite drained.
The school is well-equipped for the heat and Mrs Dell says they have special routines for hot days. Each classroom, the office and library are air-cooled. Students have access to a water cooler and are encouraged to have regular drinks throughout the day.
Although it can be too hot for too much physical activity for much of Term One, in the mornings before the heat of the day sets in, children are play handball under the shade cloth area. During recess and lunch times, if it is too hot outside, students can enjoy a change of routine with cards, chess and other board games provided by the school.
Fifty-two degrees Celsius is the hottest outside temperature Mrs Dell has experienced since she began teaching at White Cliffs Public School in 1997. Opals have lured most people to live at White Cliffs, and it is opal mines that offer most students' families a respite from the oppressive heat.
As mine excavation progresses the caverns are converted into dug-outs or underground residences - many rivalling suburban homes in size and sophistication - that remain at a constant 22 degrees Celsius all year round.
Apart from the occasional student from a nearby grazing property, all the White Cliffs Public School students live underground, so apart from the trips to and from school, the ordeals of living in the hottest place in the State are no longer as arduous as they were for students of the outback some time ago.
Source: (NSW Department of Education & Training)