Last Thursday and Friday’s heavy snowfall prompted safety concerns that resulted in a rare decision to close schools in the region.
While schools were closed in Olds and surrounding area as well as Cremona, Sundre, Carstairs, Didsbury, and Reed Ranch, some — in Bowden, Innisfail, Penhold, Sylvan Lake, and Spruce View — remained open, albeit with limited bus services, he said.
“We typically do not close the schools,” Kurt Sacher, superintendent of the Chinook’s Edge School Division said during a phone interview on March 8.
“It’s all about safety…there was just no hope of the weather clearing in time for them to safely get in,” he said.
Although classes sometimes remain open even when buses are cancelled, the division will ultimately decide to close schools when a minimum level of staffing cannot be guaranteed, he said.
“We had such a significant snowfall that it made travel unsafe for staff, and we didn’t feel we’d have enough staff to be operational.”
The school division’s officials are also concerned about students and their families during such conditions, as when the decision to cancel buses is made, people might choose to drive in, he said.
“Using the information we had, we drew the line at Olds,” he said, adding such calls are, “not a perfect science and a difficult decision to make.”
By 6:30 a.m. on Friday, March 8, the decision was made to close the aforementioned schools, with notifications on the radio informing the public before 7 a.m., he said.
