Stormy Weather Advisory

WEATHER INFORMATION 2016/17

Announcements of District-wide Closures and/or Delayed Openings of Schools

As winter/stormy weather approaches, we want to remind parents/guardians, students, and staff of the Delta School District’s winter weather procedures and announcements.

All schools in the Delta School District will remain OPEN, if at all possible during fall/winter weather, including storms and snowfalls.  Any district-wide closure will be decided by 6:00 a.m. at the latest and will be announced through the media.  Please note that no announcement will be made stating that schools are open. Only closures and delayed openings will be announced.

Information about any district-wide closures will be sent to Metro Vancouver radio and television stations.  Please check the following stations for school closure information:

CBC AM 690 radio, 88.1 FM: BCTV

CHQM FM 103.5 radio: CBC TV

CKNW AM 980 radio: City TV

Fairchild AM 1470 radio: CTV BC

News AM 1130 radio

Announcements of school closures or delayed openings will be posted on the School District’s website. Individual school closures due to unique circumstances (e.g., power outages) will be announced as early as possible on the District website as well as on the affected schools’ websites. On occasion, schools may delay the start of the school day; if this happens, specific details will be posted on the school and District websites.

Student safety is the first priority of the Delta School District.  Parents/Guardians are responsible for their children’s safe travel to and from school.  If, for any reason, a parent/guardian feels that a child cannot travel safely to school, then they should make other arrangements. Schools will be kept open except under extreme circumstances to provide the option of attendance for all, but the decision to attend is the responsibility of each family.

During extreme weather conditions it is also common for police and other authorities to advise citizens to avoid unnecessary travel.  Parents should take this advice as well. Students will not be penalized for lack of attendance under such poor weather conditions. This is also a reminder to all students to dress warmly and wear appropriate clothing. Sidewalks and roads can be extremely slippery and so students walking to school are advised to take extra care.

At this time, we encourage you to review your own preparations for winter weather and ensure that you are familiar with your municipality’s snow and ice response procedures. We request that you strictly adhere to parking restrictions in and around all Delta schools.  Your child’s school will contact you about any changes to driving routes (one way) that may be put into effect on streets adjacent to the school.

With your cooperation and adherence to winter weather procedures, we can help achieve safe conditions for students travelling to and from school.  Please put safety first.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation during the months ahead.

Doug Sheppard

Superintendent of Schools

Delta School District (No. 37)dsheppard@deltasd.bc.ca

Links:Metro Vancouver Weather Forecast – Environment Canada
http://www.weatheroffice.gc.ca/city/pages/bc-74_metric_e.html