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Icy rural roads keep county schools closed

January 23, 2008|Betty Smith

Black ice on the roads resulted in the closing of Clark County Schools for the second day this week.

Although all thoroughfares appeared clear, many were affected by the frozen residue of Tuesday's snowfall.

Kevin Wilson, Clark County road supervisor, said his crews went out at 10 p.m. Tuesday and worked until 2 a.m. today. During that time, they spread between 60 and 70 tons of salt, making a total of 180 tons used during the quick-falling snow of Tuesday morning and the brief snowfall Tuesday night.

Wilson said although the county's salt supply is good, he received another 50 tons Tuesday afternoon, and another 50 tons will be delivered today.

City streets and alleys were affected by the black ice, according to Pat Clark, Winchester's public works director.

"We just had one call this morning. I believe that is the result of our crews treating the intersections and spots that usually are affected by leftover ice and snow," Clark said.

After using approximately 110 tons of salt to treat the city's streets and alleys, the city has approximately 250 tons of salt on hand with another 100 tons on order, Clark said.

Paul Christy, director of operations for Clark County Public Schools, said a brief snowfall came through the county early last night, and when it melted, with the cold temperatures, it left a lot of ice.

"I left a meeting at the school board about 10:30 p.m. and the parking lot was very slick. I checked some other areas and they were all slick. While the main roads were clear, the side roads were icy, and we make every effort to protect our students," he said.

"We have about 6,000 students we are responsible for, and we want to make every effort to keep not only the students, but the teachers and other workers safe. If we should make an error, it will be an error on the side of safety."

Christy added, "By late morning today, people will wonder why the schools were closed, but we feel we made the right decision. None of our students who ride the buses, drive their own vehicles or are driven to school were injured. And that is what we base our decision on, to keep our staff and students safe."

Information on other school closings was not available at press time.

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