Long Day For Montclair Students; Buses Delayed By Snow Woes

MONTCLAIR, NJ — Hazardous road conditions from Thursday’s snowstorm made the ride home difficult for some students in Montclair, who were stalled by unexpected busing delays, officials said.

The winter’s first snowstorm pummeled New Jersey and took a serious toll on the roads; car crashes were seen across Essex County.

Impassable, treacherous streets also hit home in Montclair. Students at three public schools – Renaissance, Nishuane, and Hillside – were kept inside the buildings under supervision when buses couldn’t make their way to pick them up, TAP Into reported.

“Snow storm conditions were much worse than predicted and created busing issues,” Montclair school administrators stated Thursday.

On Friday morning, the Montclair School District website had the following message:

“An unexpected change in weather conditions in our neighboring communities has resulted in our inability to sufficiently staff our schools. Therefore, all Montclair schools will close today, Friday, November 16. For any parents with critical child care needs, please email Dr. Johnson at kjohnson@montclair.k12.nj.us directly as the district will make accommodations due to this late change.”

Students at Montclair State University also saw transportation woes in the storm on Thursday, according to The Montclarion.

Some students on campus were stuck in traffic for 3 hours; others reported getting stuck in parking garages and forced to hoof it out.

WEST ORANGE: TRAPPED AT SCHOOL

Montclair’s neighboring school district, West Orange, also saw busing issues on Thursday, albeit more severe.

In West Orange, the snowstorm stranded hordes of West Orange students on buses and in classrooms when the roads turned into icy nightmares. Some students spent the night at school. Others were stuck on buses, some of which were rerouted to the local Chit Chat Diner.

The students were safe, officials reported, but local parents had plenty to say about the incident on social media.

• See related article: West Orange Students Trapped After Snow Stalls Buses (PHOTOS)

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