More than 20 Massachusetts school districts, including Brockton, Plymouth, and Fall River, will remain shuttered Friday as parents scramble to find child care days after a major blizzard blew through the state.
Some cities say they are still working on street cleanup after the historic storm, which left as much as 30 inches of snow in some areas of the state.
Regina Campagna, a support specialist at Commonwealth Family Childcare, an organization that connects families with home-based childcare providers, said some parents are even struggling to get their children to programs that are open because of the snow.
Campagna said she talked to one Brockton parent who needed to get to work but was unable to drive due to an unplowed street – the caretaker walked to pick up the child by foot.
“Some families are living on streets that have not been plowed yet, so they can’t get out regardless,” said Campagna, whose organization serves families in Brockton, Taunton, New Bedford and Hyannis. “It’s been affecting a lot of families.”
Officials from Brockton Public Schools said in an online alert that schools would be closed through Friday, due to “continued cleanup efforts happening throughout the City of Brockton.”
City officials said in a statement that while snow cleanup progress, “may feel slow,” the city is “working diligently to make every street in Brockton open and accessible.” About 97% of the city’s streets had been cleared as of the afternoon update, according to the city.
Stephen Pina, a Brockton School Committee member, said he understands the pressures working families face, but supports the school district’s decision to keep schools closed. During the last snowstorm in January, he said, parents were concerned about kids walking and taking the bus in icy conditions.
“It’s the superintendent’s call, and she had the information that the areas around the schools were cleared up literally today,” he said. “They did the right thing by closing.”
The Plymouth Public Schools also posted an alert on their website saying the district will be closed through Friday. “We are all looking forward to returning to normal routines as soon as possible, however -- our primary objective will always be safety,’’ the post said.
Luis Pizano, chair of the Plymouth School Committee, said shutting down schools is “never something the district takes lightly, especially when it’s to this extreme where we’re out the entire week.” He said the challenges for working parents are greater now as more businesses open across the state.
“It is a burden,” he said. “The number one priority is safety, and right now, we have so many roads that are still completely impassable even for a car, let alone a school bus.”
