With nearly 115 million Americans at risk for wind chill warnings or advisories this week, surprisingly it didn’t apply to International Falls.
The Icebox of the Nation got a shout out from “The Today Show” meteorologist Al Roker Thursday morning for its air temperature of 33 degrees below zero.
“International Falls is the only place not being affected by wind chill,” Roker reported on the show. “Their air temperature is minus 33, but it’s calm so the wind chill is minus 33. Good for you.”
The frigid air sweeping a good chunk of the United States prompted several school cancellations nationwide, but schools in Borderland were scheduled as normal Thursday.
Falls Superintendent Kevin Grover said all weather factors are considered when choosing to delay classes or cancel school all together, including wind chill, road conditions and snowfall amounts. A recommendation in the district’s handbook regarding weather policies, suggests school closes when the air temperature is 40 degrees below zero.
“Negative 33 degress is very cold, but our buses are housed in buildings,” Grover said. “We feel our transportation is very good...We have extra buses ready to go – actually running – on days like today, and they should be able to reach a bus that might be experiencing trouble in a short amount of time.”
On the flip side, the superintendent said the discretion on whether to keep a child home from school is always left up to the parents or guardians.
“If parents choose to keep their children home, we understand,” he said.
Elementary students Thursday did not spend morning hours before the bell rang outdoors, instead they quickly hurried inside the school. The superintendent said oftentimes in subzero temperatures, students are also kept in from recess.
“When its this cold, they’re going to be inside, they aren’t going to be out playing,” he said.
Grover stressed safety is always the leading factor when deciding to continue classes as scheduled, but also said he realizes the inconvenience delays or cancellations can cause.
“It isn’t that we won’t cancel or delay, we will, but we feel if we can get kids here safely, this is where they should be,” he said.
Snow on the way
Meanwhile, the East Coast prepared Thursday for what forecasters referred to as “bomb cyclone”, for its sharp drop in atmospheric pressure, was expected to bring hurricane-force winds, coastal flooding and several feet of snow.
In Borderland, the weekend’s weather outlook calls for a nearly 60-degree temperature change with a high of 24 degrees Sunday. But with that, comes snow. Starting Saturday, the following five days call for a least a slight chance of snow according to the National Weather Service in Duluth, however, accumulation predictions were not listed as of Thursday.
