SPOKANE, Wash. — Spokane Public Schools released a statement Wednesday afternoon explaining its decision not to cancel school following the overnight snowstorm.
District leaders said conditions were varied from area to area and closing individual schools doesn't make sense for some families.
The statement the district posted on Twitter said:
This won't be our last bout with snow. We monitor local weather forecasts, work with our friends at the City of Spokane and Spokane County to stay current on their progress de-icing our bus routes, and communicate with Durham, which provides bus services to our students, about needs and progress. The early morning mist turned some roads slick and icy rather than bare and wet - like the ones near Chase Middle.
One question that came up this week with a parent group was if we close individual schools due to weather impacts? The answer is rarely. Individual school closures and delays are typically reserved when there are facility concern - power outages, localized flooding issues, or other building damage. With nearly five dozen schools, changing schedules at individual schools because of weather becomes very difficult to coordinate and manage for everyone, including families with students at multiple schools, with only an hour or two notice.
Throughout the winter, we'll continue to work with our city and country partners to address known trouble spots along our bus routes so all our students continue to make it to school safely.
SPS buses had a hard time on the roads Wednesday morning. Students were on a bus that slid off the road on Spokane's South Hill, according to a district spokesperson.
A school resource officer told KREM that none of the students were hurt after the bus slid off the road at 37th Avenue and Havana Street. A mechanic on scene said the bus only has minor damage.
Multiple buses were delayed due to the crash.
About 80 Durham buses were late to school on Wednesday morning as snowy and icy roads snarled the commute for many drivers.
Two inches of snow fell around the Spokane area from Tuesday night into Wednesday morning.
Reasons for the bus delays raged from car accidents around the buses, drivers chaining up their buses because of unplowed roads and general traffic.
Despite icy roads on Wednesday morning, no schools were delayed or closed.
Spokane Public Schools posted on their Facebook page that all schools were open and on time on Wednesday morning.
Parents can check whether their child's bus is on time on the Spokane Public Schools bus tracker. The bus tracker allows parents to view student's current school bus location and information about the route, including the scheduled arrival time to at home.