(STN Podcast E231) Come Together: Florida Hurricane Fallout, NAPT Conference Recap

By: Claudia Newton

15 October 2024 at 20:59

Ryan and Tony analyze Hurricanes Helene and Milton’s impact on Florida and recap the news and awards shared at the National Association for Pupil Transportation Conference & Trade Show.

Transfinder CEO Antonio Civitella discusses leveraging technology and teamwork for school bus operations and emergency preparedness.

Florida Student Transporters Rely on Past Experiences to Survive Hurricane Milton

School Transportation News

By: Ryan Gray

9 October 2024 at 17:34

Ahead of Hurricane Milton making landfall along the Florida Gulf Coast and mass evacuations, school districts across the state have been preparing for the so-called “storm of the century.”

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says Milton is a “dangerous major hurricane” that was expected to make landfall Wednesday evening. Earlier Wednesday, NOAA said Milton was a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of about 145 mph. The massive storm is projected to cut across the Florida peninsula and remain a hurricane until it reaches the Atlantic Ocean. A storm surge of 15 feet or greater is expected all along the Florida Gulf Coast, with the Tampa-St. Petersburg, Sarasota and Fort Myers areas especially impacted.

Many areas along the Gulf Coast are still recovering from Hurricane Helene that hit a week ago.

On Wednesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis tweeted that even if Milton weakens before making landfall, it “will be a major hurricane with catastrophic impacts on our state … Time is running out …”

While many Florida residents evacuated out of state, DeSantis advised that even evacuations of 10 miles away from the coast can help residents avoid the deadly storm surge. He said everyone should be prepared for widespread power outages. Florida also has over 50,000 electrical linemen “and all the necessary equipment staged just outside of Milton’s path.”

School Transportation News reached out to several school districts to gauge how they were preparing for Milton. Orange County Public Schools serving the Orlando area was the only one to respond at this report.

While Orlando is normally a destination for residents seeking shelter from hurricanes, as most reduce to a tropical storm by the time they get there, Milton is expected to also cause tornados in addition to torrential rain and flooding. William Wen, the senior director of transportation services for Orange County Public Schools, told STN on Tuesday that staff begins topping of school bus fuel tanks 24 hours out from a storm’s arrival.

“When we shut down, all buses will nearly be full and our fuel suppliers can top off our tanks at our fuel islands at six locations,” he said. “With the buses full and fueling stations at capacity, we can operate for about 1 week without needing another fuel delivery, if needed. It’s important to be ready to support schools to reopen for students as soon as it is safe after a storm event.”

The transportation department is also part of the District Incident Management Team, which is led by the OCPS Safety and Emergency Management (SEM) department. Leaders from all district departments make up the team.

“When a storm is approaching, regular virtual meetings are set up for storm updates, to review what each department is doing in preparation of the storm, how we can support each other, and to review plans for recovery,” Wen explained.

The district’s SEM Department communicates closely with the local and state offices of emergency management, Wen continued. The SEM department assigns staff to the local county emergency operations center as the district provides schools for shelters as needed.

“Transportation services serves as the back up to the local transit authority for mass evacuations,” he added. “At the start of each school year, we gather a list of school bus drivers that are willing to help during an emergency for us to call when needed.”

The Washington Post reported that Milton could be Florida’s largest evacuation since Hurricane Irma in 2017.

Wen noted that all OCPS transportation sites are located above flood zones, so the devastation that coastal districts can sustain is usually not the case in Orlando. “We are anticipating tropical storm sustained winds up to 65 mph and hurricane level wind gusts up to 75 to 90 mph from Milton,” he said.

Transportation staff also remove anything from parking lots and facilities that can blow away, and older buses are parked around the buildings to block major debris from hitting windows and doors, he explained. The buses are parked together with passenger doors facing inward to minimize winds from blowing them open. Stop arms are secured to prevent them from being blown out.

“Once all the buses are back from the last runs, we park the older buses to circle around the rest to protect them from wind and debris damage,” Wen shared.

**Orange County Public School buses are parked in preparation for the arrival of Hurricane Ian in September 2022.**

After a storm passes, “when it’s safe to venture out,” Wen said, area transportation managers visit their services areas to determine if roads are flooded or blocked by debris. They report to the senior transportation staff member assigned to the OCPS emergency coordination center the areas that need attention for debris removal and traffic signal repairs.

OCPS is closed Wednesday through Friday due to the storm and will reopen on Tuesday after an already scheduled student holiday-teacher workday on Monday. The Florida Department of Education said 46 county school districts are closed Wednesday, 45 on Thursday, and 29 on Friday.

The post Florida Student Transporters Rely on Past Experiences to Survive Hurricane Milton appeared first on School Transportation News.

Updated: The Aftermath of Hurricane Helene Across the Southeast U.S.

School Transportation News

By: Merari Acevedo-Vigo

4 October 2024 at 20:21

The devastation of Helene is being felt across the Southeast U.S. as the death toll was over 200 and counting with communities across a half-dozen states were left underwater, without power and cell service.

According to local news reports, at least 20 locations in western North Carolina received record rainfall that reached the 1,000-year flood threshold. Statistically speaking, flooding of this magnitude or greater has a 1 in 1,000 chance of occurring in any given year, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

As of Thursday, over half of the 215 recorded deaths at that time had occurred in North Carolina, with the Asheville area the worst hit. Florida, where Helene made landfall last Thursday, announced at least 19 deaths. Georgia confirmed 33 deaths, South Carolina counted 41 deaths so far and Georgia 33 deaths. Florida, where Helene made landfall last Thursday, has at least 19 deaths, Tennessee, 11 and Virginia, two.

Gov. Ron Desantis released a statement confirming that emergency responders had to bulldoze four to five feet of sand off road to clear bridges and causeways along Florida’s Gulf Coast due to storm surges and flooding.

Patrick Sheehan, director of the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, told local journalists that over 100 people were confirmed missing with the number expected to grow.

Additionally, the Tennessee Department of Transportation said on their website that they have inspected over 100 bridges in 36 hours. Officials still have hundreds more to check.

State departments of transportation are also working around the clock to evaluate and repair highway infrastructure that ahs been closed due to being washed out if not completely destroyed, reported Roads & Bridges.

According to the National Weather Service, there are some concerns about additional landslides as precipitation could produce more runoff that can potentially result in unstable slopes across mountainous terrains.

In a statement, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro announced he would be deploying resources from the state’s emergency management agency and National Guard to North Carolina. Additionally, both New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont will also be assisting in recovery efforts.

Subsequently, many school districts across these states announced closures of at least a week via social media. It was unclear in this report the extent of any damage to the district school buses and transportation operations across the Southeast.

Schools in several counties in North Carolina stated that poor road conditions as well as communications and electrical disruptions have impeded its reopening. Some districts have considered e-learning.

Carter County Schools in Tennessee said it be closed until Friday but will be providing food services across the county to families. Additionally, Jasper County School District in South Carolina also served bagged lunches at some of their campuses on Tuesday.

Asheville City Schools in North Carolina released a statement on social media announcing an indefinite closure. The district is working closely with first responders and county officials to set up a free Wi-Fi and a charging station in the main parking lot of the middle school.

District superintendent Dr. Maggie Fehrman sent a message thanking those that have been working nonstop during their recovery process.

A spokesperson for Daimler Truck North America, parent company of Thomas Built Buses, told School Transportation News that plants in the Carolinas are operating although not all are at full capacity.

Statement from Daimler Truck North America

Our thoughts are with everyone affected by Hurricane Helene. We wish everyone a full and speedy recovery.

At this time, all of our plants in the Carolinas are operational; not all are at full capacity. The Freightliner Custom Chassis plant in Gaffney, South Carolina, lost power due to the storm, but has since recovered. While we and our suppliers are assessing the impact on infrastructure and operations, we anticipate supply chain disruptions as some key components are manufactured in the affected areas.

DTNA has donated $100,000 to the Red Cross Hurricane Helene Relief Fund and has opened additional relief channels through Daimler Truck Cares.

Additionally, the spokesperson shared that Thomas Built Buses partnered with Carolina Thomas and Operation Airdrop to “stuff the bus” with needed supplies for the region.

Carolina Thomas, LLC said via social media that to support relief efforts they partnered with Operation Airdrop to fill buses with essential supplies and take them to drop-off centers throughout the week. Thomas Built Buses also confirmed via social media that they will be joining this partnership to help deliver essentials. Operation Airdrop is a non-profit organization that focuses on organizing general aviation assets in the aftermaths of natural disasters.

A spokeswoman for Blue Bird said school bus manufacturing facilities in Fort Valley, Georgia were “minimally affected” by Helene and that the company sustained no “lasting issues.” She added that all employees were safe and accounted, but the company remained “deeply saddened to see the devastation left in the wake of Hurricane Helene.

“Our thoughts go out to those impacted both in Georgia and beyond.”

The Quartz Corp., a Norway-based company that makes semiconductor chips used in automobiles, has two mining facilities located in Spruce Pine, North Carolina, about an hour outside of Asheville. They both shut down due to widespread flooding, power and communications outages.

The company released a statement on Tuesday announcing it faces multiple challenges and has no visibility on when operations will restart.

School Transportation News continues to monitor the situation in the Southeast and will provide further updates as the information is made available.

The post Updated: The Aftermath of Hurricane Helene Across the Southeast U.S. appeared first on School Transportation News.

Trees Fall on School Buses with Students on Board

School Transportation News

By: Merari Acevedo-Vigo

3 October 2024 at 23:51

A Teague Middle School student in Florida was injured on Friday, after a tree branch fell on the school bus and broke its window, reported Click Orlando.

The incident reportedly occurred when the school bus was making a right turn. A branch from a nearby tree broke and hit the back window .

A child that was on board the bus received a minor cut due to broken glass. The student was treated at the scene, no other injuries were reported.

That same Friday afternoon, a tree fell on an Ohio school bus with students on board, reported Fox 8.

West Chester Police said the tree that fell on the Lakota Local school bus also toppled electrical wires.

Students that were on the bus were kept inside the bus as a safety precaution, until crew from Duke Energy arrived at the scene and defused the situation.

No injuries were reported at the time of the incident.

The post Trees Fall on School Buses with Students on Board appeared first on School Transportation News.

Deadly Hurricane Helene Closes Schools in Multiple States Amid Catastrophic Flooding

School Transportation News

By: Merari Acevedo-Vigo

27 September 2024 at 17:20

Hurricane Helene slammed into the northwest Florida coast as Category 4 storm, bringing with it 140 mph winds and intense rain that had already resulted in widespread flooding that extended north into Georgia and had killed 22 at this report.

The National Weather Service had warned of unsurvivable storm surges all along the Gulf Coast of Florida.

In addition to the reported fatalities, multiple news reports indicated 4.4 million utility customers from Florida to Virginia were without power as of Friday morning.

About 60 of the state’s 73 public school districts were closed at least on Thursday in preparation for Helene’s landfall, which occurred at approximately 11 p.m. local time that evening, with many also closed on Friday.

For example, Citrus County School District announced it would close Thursday and Friday, and Lake County Schools were advised to close on Thursday. All Lake-Sumter campuses were closed, as well as all Marion County Public Schools and Polk County Schools.

The Florida Department of Education posted a full list of school closures on its website.

Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency on Wednesday for 61 of Florida’s 67 counties as Helene intensified to a hurricane on its path toward the state, according to the National Hurricane Center. DeSantis also activated the Florida National Guard and Florida State Guard.

The Georgia Department of Education recommended all school districts in the Peach State dismiss early on Thursday and to remain closed Friday.

According to local news reports, Helene is the strongest hurricane to hit Florida so far this year, with strong winds hitting Florida’s Panhandle on Thursday morning. Helene made landfall not far from where Hurricane Idalia did last August.

A map from the National Hurricane Center showed Helene moving north through Florida on Thursday night.

The Florida Highway Patrol closed the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, after winds reached 60 mph. Mandatory evacuations from were issued as winds and flooding intensified.

Approximately 40 people were removed from rising water along the US19 corridor with assistance of the Pasco County Fire Rescue said the Pasco County Sheriff in a statement. The heavy rainfall resulted in urban and river flooding as well as landslides in the Southeast. Citrus County Sheriff told local news reporters emergency crews conducted more than 100 water rescues as storm surge from Helene stands at around 10 feet.

The hurricane weaken to a tropical storm as it made its way into Georgia and the eastern Carolinas as well as Tennessee. But winds remained at 45 mph. Rainfall was reported at 1- to 2-inches per hour. Flash floods hit northern Georgia, especially in the Atlanta area, as well as southeast South Carolina and southeast North Carolina. Tornados were also possible. Flash flood warnings were expected extend to the Washington, D.C. area, St. Louis, Missouri to Mobile, Alabama.

This is a developing story. STN will update as more information becomes available.

The extent of possible flooding from Hurricane Helene, as of Sept. 25, 2024. Image courtesy of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The post Deadly Hurricane Helene Closes Schools in Multiple States Amid Catastrophic Flooding appeared first on School Transportation News.

Reading view