Schools in Columbia, Aiken, McDuffie and Edgefield counties will be closed Monday because of anticipated bad weather, school officials announced today.
Classes at at least four area colleges will be delayed.
Board of Education secretary Tina Dross, making the announcement on behalf of Columbia County School Superintendent Charles Nagle, said roads are not expected to be safely passable for buses until after 9:30 a.m., which would leave too little of the school day remaining.
All 12-month contract employees - including central office staff and school custodians - are expected to report at 10 a.m.
Aiken County 12-month employees were also on two-hour delay.
A decision on closings or delayed openings in Richmond County will be made by 5 a.m. Monday, according to Lou Svehla, spokesman for the school system.
Classes were expected to continue as normal at Medical College of Georgia, according to a spokeswoman.
Dan Miller of the National Weather Service in West Columbia, S.C., said Augusta could get 1 to 3 inches of snow.
"There's going to be a gradient around the area," he said, with as much as 4 inches in Lincoln and McCormick counties and as little as 1 inch in the Waynesboro area.
Overnight lows were expected to drop into the mid-20s.
"Eventually as the temperatures start to cool down, we're expecting that some accumulation will take place on grassy services.
"Bridges and overpasses will probably be slick. Things could get a little hazardous for travel later tonight."
Temperatures should be above freezing by 10 a.m. Monday, he said, with a high in the low 40s.
However, he warned that "residual moisture" could freeze Monday night, again causing hazardous driving conditions.
Temperatures are expected to moderate through the week, he said.
"Friday we've got (a high of) 72 degrees."
In McDuffie County a funnel-shaped cloud, believed to have been a tornado was spotted about 6 p.m. Saturday.
Chris Pelly, county director of roads and bridges, said Jimmy Smith saw what he described as a tornado touch down in an area off Central Road Extension. Shingles were torn off to at least one home in the area, just south of Thomson, while a number of cedar trees also were damaged.
Other confirmed school closings, as of 10 p.m.:
Augusta Christian Schools
Augusta Preparatory Day School
Westminster Schools
Warren County
Briarwood Academy
Fox Creek High School
Midland Valley Christian Academy and Day Care
Delayed openings:
Augusta State University - no classes until 10 a.m.
Paine College - classes delayed two hours
University of South Carolina Aiken - no classes until 11 a.m.; faculty and staff should report by 10:30 a.m.
Aiken Technical College - no classes until 11 a.m.
Morris News Service writers Billy Hobbs and Lynn Davidson contributed to this report.
[BEGINBOX]
If it does snow, take pictures and send them to preston.sparks@augustachronicle.com. He'll post them on his weather blog.
[ENDBOX]
The Augusta Chronicle ©2010 Morris Communications, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
I hope that people will use some common sense and drive carefully tomorrow morning. Snow is fun but ice is dangerous if you aren't careful.
Common sense and Augusta drivers does not compute!
I've lived here for 40-something years. I'll believe it when I actually see it. It's one thing for it to snow, but it's entirely different for it to stick and accumulate. Won't stick to anything that's wet. Don't get me wrong, I want it to snow! I'd love for it to snow a couple of feet! (I know..be careful what you wish for, right?) Sure hope the ice doesn't mess people up tonight and tomorrow morning. Ya'll say a prayer for me because I have to drive out in it at 5 a.m. tomorrow!
It's snowing outside of Atlanta and heading this way. It will most likely be slush and ice because of all the rain we've had combined with low temperatures. Ice is not safe to drive on, especially down here. A little of the white stuff would be nice to look at though!
It's nice to see CCBOE be proactive. Better safe than sorry.
Thank you CCBOE for making the announcement early !!!! :)
Uhhhhhhhhhh...temps AIN"T LOW NOW... Hellllllllllo, workingmom
gardez...it is the storm that will bring the colder temperatures for snow, sleet and ice. (and ain't is not a word)
The county is making a decision on all the children and their employees not just one child. They did a good thing by letting us know now and not in the morning it gives all the working parents time to find sitters.
gardez, I realize that the temps are not low enough YET, but they are definitely dropping.
wake up richmond county decision makers, we have working parents that need to know before 5am if the kids are out of school, or did we forget our superintendents child attends cc schools
I fully agree, Richmond Cty. needs to mak a descisoin now. Parents do have to find sitters, which is often impossibe at 5 in the morning!!
do you think the richmond school will cancel?
GOOBAMA08. "...did we forget our superintendent(')s child attends (cc) school(s)(?)" This "intelligent" question finishes a "grammatically correct" and "logically consistent" comment!
By the way, GOOBAMA08, in what Columbia County public school are you concerned that "we" might forget that one of Dr. Bedden's children is a student?
I really doubt Richmond County will cancel school!!.. They don't care about their parents or the working parents or whatever!!.. They care about the children getting to school by all means possible.. so if we have an accident we better rush the cop to write up everything so we can get there on time!!!
That's because "accident" is an unexcused tardy!!
Funds for operation of schools depends on school attendance...
bunch of sissy's!
You said it My_2nd! Even my kids are laughing at this one! It's raining for heavens sake. I could see if there was a foot of snow out there, but come on now!!!!! Okay, so even if it does snow a little, what is everyone so afraid of??? Tell me, what's the difference between going muddin and sliding all over the place and driving in a little snow or ice?? LOL! SISSY'S
www.wrdw.com website has a better listing of closings. McDuffie County is also closed. Richmond will make a decision by 5 AM.
I learned to drive in the snow on the beltway around Baltimore. I think it snowed about three feet during that storm. Maryland gets real snow. I'm sure Augusta's snow will amount to a little bit of nothing, as usual.
What a bunch of bull, It's simple have a sitter lined up and dont wait untill 5am. Stupid people shouldnt even have to go to work. Just keep collecting your EBT cards.
Sunshine827 and My_2nd, maybe you should go to school tomorrow instead of your kids. You clearly don't know the difference between a possesive noun (sissy's) and a plural noun (sissies).
As for those of you saying that we southerners can't handle the snow, it's not the snow that is dangerous. It's the ice. I knew a man that died in an icestorm a few years back. I certainly wouldn't risk safety over a single day of school.
If you are so "fed up" with Augusta, Delta is ready when you are!
Too bad we don't have weather reporters like they do in Little Rock, Arkansas. They can almost tell you what time the snow will start and what time it will stop. I've been there when that happened. Several weeks ago when the bad storm came through Arkansas they said all along that the storm would not come through Little
Rock-and it didn't. Some of you may remember Troy Bridges from one of the Augusta TV stations. He was one of the Weather reporters after he left Augusta. We missed him on this trip out there. I e-mailed the station and asked about him-He is now in Orlando near his family.
Listen people...the snow is not the worry it is the ice. It is not that southerners can't drive in the snow...the fact is...because we rarely have winter conditions in these areas, we do not have the equipment to clear the roads as do the cities/counties in the northern regions. I agree that districts should consider working parents but I also agree that working parents can go ahead and make plans just in case!!!
Wake up Richmond County, what are you waiting for to make a decision. Working parents need to know in order to make arrangements for their children. You do realize a lot of teachers live in Columbia County that teach in your school district.
Looks like its going to miss us now anyway!!! lol