Aztec Municipal Schools closed and switched to remote learning before a storm dumped about 3 inches of snow in the Farmington area Thursday.
The district announced on its website about 5:30 a.m. that it would go on a two-hour delay. About 7:30 a.m., the district said it would switch to remote learning beginning at 10 a.m.
All other schools in the county remained open, largely because the storm hit northwestern Farmington after buses had begun their routes.
Shana Reeves, assistant city manager, said the city did not have any closures. She said in an email that crews prepared for the storm Wednesday evening.
“In preparation for the predicted storm, we loaded and prepared seven large trucks and four small trucks. Our crews were out just before 5 a.m. this morning driving routes and checking streets,” she said.
Reeves said that on Thursday morning the city had full crews out working the streets and they will continue throughout the day. She reported that the Red Apple Transit service was paused in the morning.
Devin Neeley, San Juan County communications manager, said county operations were normal.
“All six of our plow trucks are working designated routes,” he said.
Multiple traffic accidents were reported Thursday. Scanner traffic reported a crash at the intersection of Murray Drive and the Highway 371 (Bisti Highway) involving a semitrailer and an SUV. The driver of the SUV complained of back pain and was taken to San Juan Regional Medical Center for examination.
Amanda Torres, Farmington schools transportation secretary, said the snow did not start falling until 6:15 a.m.
“Once our buses are out, we can’t cancel school because we have some (students) on buses and some going out to bus stops,” she said.
If significant snow had fallen an hour earlier, schools would have delayed the start of classes, Torres said.
“The kids are at school, and they’re safe,” she said. “If it does continue and they reevaluate the weather, if they call an early release, then a message would get sent out to parents.”
The problem with an unscheduled early release is that working parents might have difficulty getting to bus stops to pick up their children. Younger children, such as kindergartners, present a larger problem.
Dean Bekise of the Central Consolidated Kirtland transportation department, said the district works with New Mexico Department of Transportation to monitor road conditions. Initially, road conditions were expected to improve by 10 a.m.
“They said 10:00, and now they’re saying until noon,” he said Thursday morning.
Bekise said transportation department teams set a plan to check bus routes before noon. From there, the teams make a recommendation in their chain of command.
“We’re in close communication right now,” he said Thursday morning.
Roger Tingley, Bloomfield schools transportation manager, said the snow continued to fall at 9 a.m.
“We didn’t have time to call a delay or anything, the buses were already half-loaded by the time the snow started,” he said.
Tingley said he was counting on snowplows to help get the students home safely.
According to the New Mexico Department of Transportation website, roads around San Juan County would be considered as “difficult driving” with snowpacked and icy road conditions. The website did say snow plows were out sanding and salting.
