Another Snow Day

Tonights forecast calls for 3 to 6 inches of new snow. The question is, will there be school tomorrow morning.  After reading some of the post regarding our last storm and whether or not the decision made by the Superintendent of Schools was the correct one, I feel I must voice my opinion.

When deciding whether or not to call school off, the supt. must take into account what the road conditions will be when the buses are picking our children up.  High school and middle school students are usually picked up around 6:45 am when it is still dark.  Add to that darkness whiteout conditions due to heavy snowfall and you have a treacherous condition. During last weeks storm, the buses were out before the snow plows which meant they were the first vehicles to plow through 4 to 6 inches of snow on roads which were yet to be treated. When a 30,000 pound bus comes to a stop on snow, it tends to slide a bit. Since many children move toward the bus before it comes to a stop, they place themselves in considerable danger. Elementary school students are usually picked up an hour later, at 7:45 am.  By then, most of the main roads have been plowed, but the neighborhood roads have not.  Although the Merrimack bus drivers are the best at what they do and to their credit, there were no accidents or mishaps, many of the buses had problems getting up side street hills that had not yet been treated and in some cases had to call for sanding trucks. Many parents believe they can transport their children to school in the family car safer than the bus can. Don't believe it. They are far safer on a school bus than in a car and those parents just bog down the school bus dropoff areas at the schools.

Here's the bottom line, when it starts to snow just hours before our children are to be picked up for school and the prediction is for more than 3 inches, call school off.  Is it worth just one child getting hit by a sliding car or injured in an accident in the family car? I think not.  The Superintendent will make the best decision based on the information at hand but it's up to the parents to decide what is best for their children. If at all possible, keep them home. Schools don't schedule anything important on days it snows knowing that many children might not make it in.  If you don't feel comfortable keeping them home, then call the Superintendents office and voice your concern.

Gordon