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Weather impacting school activities; closing schools
Mar 19, 2010
The Jones County School District and Laurel School District have canceled all activities for this evening and classes for Friday as winter weather approaches the area.
The announcements come following the closures today of the state’s institutes of higher learning including Ole Miss and Mississippi State University. MSU-Meridian has also canceled classes for today.
According to Laurel School District Public Information Officer Lacey Walters, tonight's 9th grade Laurel High School basketball game vs. Wayne County has been canceled. Also, the soccer games scheduled for Friday vs. South Jones and Saturday's varsity basketball game vs. Wayne County have been canceled.
Jones County Junior College has rescheduled registration for Monday and Tuesday with regular classes beginning on Wednesday. Night classes Monday and Tuesday are scheduled as planned.
Don McKinnon, director of the Jones County Emergency Management Agency, said school officials would likely be able to make a determination tonight whether school is still in session on Friday.
“Whatever’s frozen this afternoon and evening will still be frozen tomorrow,” he said. “I think we will be O.K. I would hate to burn a day if we didn’t need it. Some of these kids would also be warmer and safer in school than the houses they would have to stay at.”
McKinnon noted that the Salvation Army has a warming station and shelter, located at 129 N. 13th Ave., open for those who need a place to get out of the cold.
“It’s not just for the homeless, but for those with inadequate heat or substandard housing,” he said. “The Red Cross also has a shelter available if we overfill capacity.”
Bonita Flynn of the Salvation Army said she has received a lot of calls about the shelter, but only a few have showed up to stay. For more information, Flynn can be contacted at 601-428-4232. Those traveling to a shelter are advised to remember to bring all of their medication.
Representatives from Dixie Electric Power Assoc. and Mississippi Power are also making preparations for the wintery blast.
Lydia Walters, communication manager at Dixie Electric, said crews have worked for the past two days to check all substations and will allow certain circuits to carry more load as necessary.
During an emergency weather briefing Thursday at the Jones County Emergency Operations Center, McKinnon said weather conditions this weekend are currently “the same as expected.”
“The arctic blast is moving into the southern part of the state as we speak,” he said. “When temperatures start dropping below freezing, we don’t expect them to return until Sunday afternoon.”
McKinnon once advised residents to take the proper precautions, including allow faucets to drip, covering outdoor pipes, bringing in or otherwise sheltering plants and pets and paying special precaution to any heating sources.
“I appreciate everyone stepping up and helping everyone who needs assistance,” McKinnon told community leaders and other officials gathered at the EOC. “We’re going to do the best we can and pray a whole lot. We will prepare for the worst and hope for the best.”
The Jones County Emergency Operations Center will be fully operational during the winter weather event. EOC officials have asked all inquiries about shelters and other needs be sent to them by calling 601-649-3535.
The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) has also set up a hotline for the latest weather and road conditions at 1-800-843-5352.
For more information, see Friday’s edition of the Laurel Leader-Call.
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