Schools hoping to reopen Monday

Hartselle City Schools will reopen if all five of its schools have power on Monday, according to School Superintendent Dr. Mike Reed.

Currently, only F.E. Burleson and Barkley Bridge elementary schools have power while Crestline Elementary, Hartselle Junior High and Hartselle High are still in the dark.

“If we get power back and the power company says it’s safe, we’re going to be in school Monday,” Reed said. “Once we make that decision, we’ll send out a phone message as soon as possible.”

Reed said the school system has also rented a refrigerator truck to help preserve food that is in the school’s freezers until power can be restored at the other three schools.

School was canceled Thursday and today in the wake of the tornadoes that damaged a number of main transmission lines coming out of TVA’s Brown’s Ferry Nuclear Power Plant. No damage was reported at the power plant itself.

TVA has given Hartselle enough power to restore just under half of the city’s power customers.

At this time, Hartselle will have to extend its school year to make up the days lost to the power outage. Alabama School Superintendent Joe Morton informed Reed that they are asking the legislature to grant a request not to make up these missed days.

Many North Alabama school systems have already used up all of its inclement weather days. In fact, Hartselle City Schools was scheduled to make up an inclement weather day today.

“We’re hoping the Legislature will allow to shorten our school year so we don’t have to make up the days,” Reed said. “As it stands right now, we’re going to have to make them up.”