DeKalb And Decatur Schools Make Decision On Thursday Classes: Hurricane Irma

DECATUR, GA -- As metro Atlanta recuperates from the effects of Hurricane Irma, the DeKalb County School District has decided to cancel classes for Thursday, Sept. 14. Of all of metro Atlanta, DeKalb was hit especially hard due to the storm's driving rain and strong winds, which caused mass power outages in the area.

The City of Decatur Schools system said late Wednesday that classes will reopen Thursday at most locations. "Power has been restored to most of our schools and City Schools of Decatur will be open on Thursday, September 14, 2017."

Decatur said that College Heights is still without power and will remain closed.
Westchester and Clairemont "are still without power but will open for regular drop off," the school system said. (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

The Decatur school district added this:

Clairemont Elementary students will begin and end their day at Clairemont and will be bused to Renfroe Middle School during the day for instruction.
Westchester Elementary students will begin and end their day at Westchester and will be bused to Decatur High School during the day for instruction.
To expedite the transitions to and from Clairemont and Westchester, the Decatur Police Department will direct traffic for the buses each way.
Parents of Clairemont and Westchester students may excuse their children from school Thursday if they would prefer to keep them home.
College Heights, Westchester, and Clairemont will provide more details in a separate eblast to their school communities.

Read more: ''Please stay inside': Irma wallops Florida

The area is recovering after Gov. Nathan Deal expanded a state of emergency for all of Georgia's 159 counties. as Irma closed in. All state government offices were closed Monday and Tuesday for all employees except essential personnel. Many of those offices re-opened on Wednesday.

Georgia Power said Wednesday morning that about 360,000 of its customers still were without electricity. Georgia EMC, an electrical membership cooperative serving much of the state, reported another 232,000 people in the dark Wednesday morning.

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As the storm left Georgia, South Carolina was expected to experience high winds and heavy rains, raising the possibility of several hazards, including downed trees and power lines.

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