Arkansans battle excessive heat

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - With the sun beating down and an excessive heat warning for parts of the state, people are trying to stay cool.

Amos Johnson’s air conditioning unit has been down and out, and they’ve been feeling the effects of the heat.

“So now we just been sitting here, sweating it out,” Johnson said.

Amos Johnson and his wife have been without AC on and off for about two weeks.

“We got four ceiling fans, and then Shirley bought two of these fans that's how we sleep at night with fans,” Johnson said.

At eighty-four years old, Johnson doesn’t let much slow him down but says he’s extra careful in these temperatures.

“We go out in the morning and exercise, and we come in and try to shower but we can't stop sweating,” Johnson said.

Their AC unit was temporarily fixed for a few days last week while they waited for parts to come in. Now, the parts are in, and Middleton Heat and Air went to work installing a new unit.

Ronald Humphrey, Residential Operations Manager at Middleton Heat & Air, sees what excessive heat can do to people every day.

“It makes a big difference when you go from the low to mid-90s to triple digits, it makes the world of difference,” Humphrey said.

A five-to-eight-degree temperature difference drastically affects the amount of work they do each day. For service calls, they’ve seen up to 250 people in these temperatures. However, their customers aren’t the only ones battling the heat, their employees are too.

“They're up in the attacks 10-12 hours a day plus sometimes, it's 165 plus in the pitch of the attic when you get up there," Humphrey said.

Humphrey says it’s their job to take care of customers, so they’re happy to do it.

“You can see how miserable that they were when you got there but the end product when you leave and see the smile on their face it’s incredible, it’s the best,” Humphrey said.

Johnson’s new unit was installed today, and he’s excited, to say the least.

“It'll be great man, life will be back to normal,” Humphrey said.

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