Snow Day! (Omaha, Lincoln, Hastings: houses, catholic schools, live)

[tpabes]

Today was a snow day for many Nebraskan's, two questions for you.

(This is based on cancellations of tv and I saw kids walking home from school). Today in Hastings, Adams Central Schools and Hastings Catholic schools closed, while Hastings Public I never saw as much as a late start. I know Hastings High lost a bunch of days due to a fire, so they probably didn't want to take any more days. However, I felt so bad seeing elementary kids walk home in the snow with a strong wind blowing at them. Question is, should there be a set standard where the superintendent has no choice but to cancel school? Like say, 6 inches and winds over 20 mph, ice over 3/4 inch thick, etc...

Other question, alot of parents take off time from work when there is a snow day. Should business have more snow days? I know that the almighty dollar does not stop for weather, but if it is too dangerous for your kids to come to school, and we are encouraged to stay off roads, why is it so darn important that people get to work? I know plenty who will take the day off, especially if their kids have a snow day, but I also know plenty that feel like they have to be into work, no matter what.

[yankeegirlforever]

Yep-like my hubby!!! When we lived there he drove 30 miles at 25 mph to get to work cuz they were told "no show-you go". Then 2 1/2 hrs after he finally made it there they sent the ones that had actually made it home!! I could've killed him myself that day!! Plus, he did slide into the ditch trying to get home, luckily he only slid and there was some other dummy driving behind him so he got a ride back to the house. But yes, if they are saying that you shouldn't be driving then employers should shut down too. They are putting people's lives at risk if they don't. And yes, my hubby has agreed not to go in again if the weather is that bad!!

[mattpoulsen]

I commuted to from Omaha to Lincoln today and it didn't seem like that big of deal. Yeah, it took a lot longer getting home, but all one has to do is plan ahead a little. I'm all for safety, but honestly I think people have gotten soft. I love a snow day like everyone else, but the truth is the world can't stop because there is some snow on the road.

I don't know...maybe I'm a little harsh about it (you can't tell by my tone but that's not what I'm intending), but I don't remember people feeling sorry for me when I would trudge through the snow to get to school. In fact, I would be out all day in the snow, if we had a snow day, anyway.

Yes, safety is an issue and at a certain point the schools should just cancel. But I think the threshold for a snowday has really lessened over the years. However, I don't have a problem with this storm as there will be about 8 inches on the ground by the morning.

[itsMeFred]

I don't know how there could be a set standard, really.
For example, our district is over 1000 square miles. I'd venture to guess that at least half of our kids are bussed. We have three gradeschools, with the eastern one being 50 miles from the western. The eastern half also has easily 80% or more of the kids.

According to weather underground, the eastern half of the district got about 8 inches where we only got three. The wind, on the other hand, blew like a siren on our end of the district, but not on the eastern end...
We had a snow day. My kids, at 6 and 8, couldn't see why. lol
When it's vice versa-that is, more snow on our end, it's harder to guess if they'll call school, or just cancel our bus routes.

And then there's Mud Days. Something unheard of in smaller districts with shorter bus routes. lol
No, I think our Supt. needs to have the flexibilty to decide on a case by case basis.

--Erin

[tpabes]

Ahh mud days. The ground is so saturated if this latest snow melts fast, we could be looking at some of those.

[alligatorboy]

Originally Posted by tpabes

Today was a snow day for many Nebraskan's, two questions for you.

(This is based on cancellations of tv and I saw kids walking home from school). Today in Hastings, Adams Central Schools and Hastings Catholic schools closed, while Hastings Public I never saw as much as a late start. I know Hastings High lost a bunch of days due to a fire, so they probably didn't want to take any more days. However, I felt so bad seeing elementary kids walk home in the snow with a strong wind blowing at them. Question is, should there be a set standard where the superintendent has no choice but to cancel school? Like say, 6 inches and winds over 20 mph, ice over 3/4 inch thick, etc...

Other question, alot of parents take off time from work when there is a snow day. Should business have more snow days? I know that the almighty dollar does not stop for weather, but if it is too dangerous for your kids to come to school, and we are encouraged to stay off roads, why is it so darn important that people get to work? I know plenty who will take the day off, especially if their kids have a snow day, but I also know plenty that feel like they have to be into work, no matter what.

I definitely think there should be standards for when businesses and schools are closed due to weather. With high school students, I would worry about new drivers driving to school in deep snow. Some people just don't seem to realize how dangerous snow is. What if some kid slipped on the ice and was knocked unconscious, and no one found them for awhile.
If this happened, they would be very sick for awhile and, depending how cold it is, could even get hypothermia, which could be fatal.
When schools are closed for snow, I am nervous about my parents going to work, but they will stay home if they think it's just too dangerous to go.
I think people that make those kind of decisions should realize that not everyone knows how to deal with snow.
What if someone had just moved hear from Florida and had never seen snow in their life? I'm nervous enough about walking and driving in the snow, and I have lived hear for 18 years.
I carry out groceries for people at a local grocery store, and I don't think they would ever give me a day off because of the snow. I had to work one day when it was probably below ten degrees and there was a lot of snow and ice. I don't think it's healthy to be going in and out again and again when it's that cold. Fortunately, when it's that cold, the costumers say that they will take out their own groceries because they don't want me to go out there and freeze.

[mattpoulsen]

If I followed the logic in your post you would have us all board ourselves up in our houses when there is ice on the ground.

I'm not sure why younger people get all bent out of shape about this. I'm only 32, but when I was young no one gave two squats about the ice on the side walk when I went to school. Do you know what they said? They said, "watch out...the sidewalk is slick."

Our society needs to stop continually becoming more and more "pansified." I'm not suggesting to risk life and limb. However, a few inches of snow and ice on the ground should not cause people to stop their lives. Snow and ice have been around Nebraska for quite some time and generations before have always been able to deal with it.

Yes, you can find exceptions, like someone just moving from Florida. However, you don't close down a business because a few people "might" not be able deal with the snow. The vast majority of people in Nebraska have seen the snow and you don't shut down productivity just so a few people haven't adjusted yet.

As far as health, you don't actually get "sick" from being exposed to cold air. That's a myth. In fact, during the winter one of the healthiest things for you is to get a nice blast of cool air (provided its not dangerously cold). The thing that makes you sick is the fact that everyone spends their time inside with the windows and doors shut -the indoors becomes a breeding ground for virus and bacteria. The fresh outdoor air actually helps mitigate this effect.