Dead A/C

[ED C.]

My wife had the a/c on the 88 TE die on her. Was working fine one minute and the next she had no blower and no cold air. The #7 fuse (blower, compressor) was blown and burned badly. I replaced the fuse and the blower function returned but no cold air. The evaporator was replaced last year and the a/c has worked fine up until today. What would cause the fuse to blow? The car still has the original compressor (180k). How would I check if the compressor is functioning? What is the typical damage for a replacement? Of course the Indy I use here in SC is closed all week for the holiday and its is in the high 90s.

Any ideas would be appreciated.


Ed C.