Ector County Independent School District and Midland Independent School District both announced a little before 8 a.m. Monday morning that school would be cancelled due to weather conditions.
Odessa College will also be closed. Meals on Wheels Odessa won’t be delivering on Monday, while the West Texas Food Bank campuses in Odessa and Midland will both closed.
The Salvation Army will offer a warming shelter starting at 5 p.m. tonight with intake at 6 p.m. for those who want to stay.
People can have a meal and if they want to stay, they can, Major Luis Melendez said. He added that they can accommodate 30 people for now and the shelter will be open through the cold snap as it was last week.
The Ector County Sheriff’s Office also has opened a warming shelter at 2261 W. Sycamore Dr. It will remain open depending on the weather.
The press release from ECISD stated: “Due to the quickly deteriorating conditions, we have made the decision to cancel school for today, Monday, January 30. Students at school they will remain there until parents are able to pick them up. Students currently on buses will be taken to the nearest campus (whether or not it is their own campus) or to the Transportation Department where they can contact their parents. We will take care of students until they are safely picked up by parents.”
The press release from MISD stated: “Midland ISD has made the decision to close school today out of an abundance of caution. The winter weather situation has gotten progressively worse since we evaluated the roads early this morning. If you have already brought your child to school, we ask that you pick them up, but only if it’s safe for you to do so. We will continue to monitor the situation.”
ECISD also issued an automated apology phone call from Superintendent Scott Muri and a statement. MISD also issued a statement.
ECISD said in its statement Monday: “This morning, ECISD leaders worked through the school district’s hazardous weather procedures, and began the day with the intention of having school start on time. Any time hazardous weather is in the forecast, members of our Transportation Department drive roads all around Odessa and Ector County to check road conditions, then connect with the National Weather Service to gain any possible insight about the approaching storm.”
“This morning, when our team was out between 4-5 a.m., the roads were dry and we felt the rain would remain relatively light throughout the morning. It is always ECISD’s intention to make a delay or closure decision by 5 a.m. and this morning, that decision was to move forward with the school day.
“The weather and the road conditions got progressively worse later in the morning and district leaders realized the safest thing to do was to close schools and offices and have everyone stay at home. Unfortunately, by that time a number of our employees were already at work, and many parents were on their way to school or had already dropped their children off. This is not a situation we ever want to put our families in, we regret that it happened this way, and we apologize for the confusion it created. We work very hard to make informed decisions with safety serving as the priority. There is more freezing weather in the forecast for this week and we will be in touch with the National Weather Service throughout that time. We will send announcements to our staff, families and community as quickly as decisions are made. We thank everyone for their patience this week as we work together to navigate this winter storm.”
Odessa College will be closed Monday due to the weather. That includes the extension sites, sports center, learning resources center and children’s center.
Ector County Judge Dustin Fawcett told the Odessa American via text message that county offices will be closed.
The City of Midland offices are also closed. The City of Midland issued a statement on its Facebook page that reads: The City of Midland offices are closed, Monday, January 30, 2023 due to inclement weather. Due to inclement weather the City of Midland offices and services will be closed today, Monday, January 30, 2023 including the landfill, solid waste pickup, City Hall and the customer service offices at the Center Pointe Building , 1030 Andrews Highway Suite 220. The roadways are expected to worsen, so please take it slow.”
The City of Odessa announced due to hazardous road conditions, city offices will delay opening until 10 a.m.
Permian Basin TTUHSC on-campus operations, activities, classes, and clinics are delayed until 10 a.m. today (Jan. 30). All remote curricular activities will continue; check for further communications from your school. Visit www.ttuhsc.edu/emergency for updates.
Compass Academy Charter School also delayed opening until 10 a.m.
