Schools in the Wake County Public School System operated on a normal schedule Tuesday despite surrounding districts, including Durham, Orange, Chatham, Johnston and others, shifting to a two-hour delay.
The delays came as overnight lows in the 20s and 30s and moisture on the roads led to icy and slick conditions for the morning commute, especially in northern Wake County.
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In Wake Forest, a Ford SUV crashed on South Main Street near Capcom Avenue. Officials confirmed the crash was partially due to ice on the road.
WRAL News reached out to the Wake County district to ask why schools operated on schedule Tuesday morning. A spokesperson replied:
Our Severe Weather Team monitors forecasts and road conditions closely before and during potential weather events. When inclement weather is a possibility, we collaborate with our Transportation Team, which conducts firsthand road assessments early in the morning. This morning, they were on the roads starting at 3 a.m. and determined that conditions were safe for buses to travel. Safety is always our top priority, and we strive to balance that with minimizing disruptions to the school day whenever possible.
According to the Wake County school district, no significant incidents were reported during the Tuesday morning commute.
The cold caused more issues Tuesday at Combs Magnet Elementary in Raleigh, where students were dismissed just an hour after they arrived due to issues with the building's heating system.
WRAL News talked to parents who were back in the carpool lane at Combs Magnet Elementary almost as soon as they finished dropping kids off.
"It was a little weird, because we dropped them off at 8 o’clock," Emily Winters, a mother, said. "I’m really fortunate to be a full-time mom to be able to jet over here, because we didn’t really have that much time."
Winters said she was surprised the decision to send kids home wasn't made earlier when the school had heating issues.
"Did you know if something was going on with the heat? Because it was very cold," she said. "I’m not really concerned about them losing the school day, it’s more the chaos of you drop them off, you go to do your thing, and then all of a sudden it’s like I've got to go back and get my son."
Heating and air conditioning problems are not new in the Wake County Public School System.
In December, seven Wake County public schools dismissed early due to a lack of heat in the buildings. Temperatures are expected to stay cold this week, with highs in the 40s each day, so more early dismissals are possible this week.
Last year, Wake County board members learned the district is $214.3 million behind on updating heating, ventilation and air conditioning equipment. District officials have blamed many of its HVAC issues on understaffing, funding gaps and old equipment.
"I know they’ve got heat problems in the cold weather, and I’ve heard through reports that Wake County needs to do something with the heat, so I don’t know what’s going to happen," said Larry Whitt, a grandparent in the carpool lane. "But it looks like to me they just need to prioritize the heat system over some other things."
Whitt said, since he is retired, the early dismissal was manageable.
"It's not the biggest disruption to my day," he said. "For all the parents that are working, I know it’s got to be a big disturbance when you get that text that school is closing at 10:15."
During the 2023 hurricane season, WRAL meteorologist Kat Campbell asked North Carlina districts how they make decisions to close over inclement weather.
During storms, multiple districts said wind speeds play a significant role in the decision to close, and others said they will consider other factors, like bus driver staffing shortages, when making the call.
Campbell said the decision whether to close over ice and snow is more difficult.
"The difference between 5 miles can be the difference between plain grass and a sledding hill," Campbell said. "Those last-minute forecast tweaks can complicate the schools’ decisions, and I think most parents would agree they tend to err on the side of caution."