The Pine Bluff/Jefferson County Library was closed Monday because of a broken air conditioning system chiller.
City of Pine Bluff Maintenance Department Director Steve Stephens said he is trying to determine the next course of action.
“The library should be reopened [Tuesday],” Stephens said. “The service guy has been there [Monday]. The air conditioner has two compressors running out of five cylinders. It is 18 years old. It has a 15-year life cycle. This unit has done pretty well.”
Stephens said he recommends buying a new air conditioner.
“We will have a meeting with the mayor (Debe Hollingsworth) and the library director (Michael Sawyer),” Stephens said. “In my opinion, you need to replace it. We spent $2,300 [on Monday]. The expense is often greater in diagnosing than in fixing the problem.”
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Stephens said that there are new chillers at the Pine Bluff city hall and in the Pine Bluff Police Department. They are resulting in savings of $20,000.
A phone call made to the library on Monday afternoon resulted in an automated message saying “We are closed at this time.”
The outside temperature in Pine Bluff was 91 degrees on Monday afternoon and the heat index was 96 degrees, according to the National Weather Service website.