School Opening Delayed Until Tuesday

Supt. of Schools Fran Rabinowitz announced Wednesday that Thursday's planned opening of the new school year is pushed back to next Tuesday, Sept. 6.

Rabinowitz said Tuesday she was hoping to go forward with Thursday's planned opening but it would depend on how well the town's roads had been cleared.

On Wednesday, it was determined that there is still too much problems with storm-related road problems to assure that school buses can safely traverse the streets to bring children to school.

"After careful consideration and consultation with Public Works and area superintendents, the opening of school will be delayed until Tuesday, Sept. 6," school officials posted on the district's website Wednesday.

Sunday's storm, downgraded from a hurricane to a tropical storm by the time it hit the state, left more than 11,000 residents in the dark and made many roads impassable because of downed trees and wires.

Public Works crews have been working around the clock since then clearing the roads, but the sheer number of problem spots made it impossible to complete the work yet. Several roads, including Evergreen Avenue, remained closed to thru traffic Wednesday as crews worked to clear the debris.

There were still more than 2,700, or 10 percent, of the town without power. UI has promised to have the bulk of those restored by the weekend, in time for Tuesday's school opening.