Schools cancel classes Friday as strong winds lash the Triangle
Chapel Hill-Carrboro, Durham, Orange and Wake County schools are closed Friday after powerful storms pounded the area and strong winds remain.
The school districts made the announcements after 7:30 a.m. Friday.
“Due to persistent high winds, power outages and hazardous travel conditions, all schools will be closed for students and staff,” Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools said in a statement.
Durham Public Schools cited the potential for strong winds in its decision.
The Orange County district on Friday had “three schools without power and two schools that are now inaccessible due to fallen trees,” according to a Facebook post.
Officials said wind and power outages led to the cancellation in Wake.
“High winds of up to 50 miles per hour and a significant number of questionable road conditions are making it unsafe to operate buses,” Wake schools said in a statement. “We also have identified power outages in at least six schools.”
More than 7,000 power outages were reported in Wake County on Friday morning, the N.C. Department of Public Safety said.
Johnston County Public Schools were operating on a two-hour delay.
A wind advisory has been issued until 5 p.m. for all parts of central North Carolina, according to the National Weather Service.
An advisory “means high winds are expected and may cause tree and property damage, forecasters say.
“Travel and other outdoor activities are very strongly discouraged this morning,” the Raleigh office of the National Weather Service said.
This story was originally published February 7, 2020 at 7:51 AM.
