UPDATED: Superintendent Reverses Position, Milford Schools to Remain Closed

UPDATED: Milford Schools will be closed, after all. Superintendent Robert Tremblay decided Sunday night that he would keep schools closed Monday.

A message to parents will be sent out by the school system.

Original Post:

The Milford public schools will reopen Monday, Superintendent Robert Tremblay announced on Sunday, but drivers, parents and students need to exercise caution. He encouraged parents of students who walk to arrange for rides to school.

The Milford Highway Department will be working through Sunday to have sidewalks cleared as best they are able, Tremblay wrote, in a message to parents on the school system website. The department expects that 60-70 percent of the sidewalks will be clear by the morning.

And the department also has been working to knock down snow banks at bus stops, Tremblay wrote.

Scott Crisafulli, the Milford Highway Surveyor, said Sunday afternoon the sidewalks along major routes should be done by the morning, except possibly Purchase Street. Connecting and residential streets will not be completed, he said.

"We definately won't have them all done."

Highway workers worked clearing snow from streets and sidewalks from 3 a.m. until noon Sunday, then went home for eight hours to sleep. The workers will be back on at 8 p.m. Sunday and will work through the night, Crisafulli said.

According to Tremblay, Milford buses will pick up any students they see walking en route to schools, as part of an emergency busing plan.

"In the interest of safety, I would encourage families to arrange for walkers to be driven to school on Monday," Tremblay wrote. "We need everyone to be on watch for children and driving carefully — especially where the view is obstructed by snowbanks."