I think it's silly. Can't the bus drivers figure out how to detour around a road they find to be flooded?

FR: Or are they any better at it at 11 o'clock then they'd be at 3:30 ?

Guys, you're forgetting two major issues. First, (obviously) the rain is going to continue for awhile; they're forecasting 12" in spots now.

Second, and probably more importantly, getting kids out now alleviates the absolute mess we'll be hearing about at rush hour.

It's just smarter and more safe to get them out now. They don't need to be there in this.

I find it funny that they are closed. However, maybe they figure it keeps the buses off the roads when traffic is heavier.

Frank,
I have only been a Marylander since 1991, having relocated from Central Florida at that time, and have always been perplexed by the 'early dismissals'?! I understand the 2 hour delay as a means of allowing snow plows or the sun to work their magic on morning snow and ice, but utter caous caused by these early dismissals make no sense at all. In fact they strike me as counter-productive. Aren't most school buildings actually shelters for severe weather, and bombs! I certainly believe they are engineered to hold up to rain, snow or even tornadoes better than the average suburban home.
Drew

Such a dumb move. The kids are inside, and safe there. Releasing them at the normal time still puts them on the roads and in the buses the same duration of time.

Unless a particular school is at risk from being flooded out of buses not being able to get out then there is no excuse.

Baltimore County administrators should dock themselves vacation time each time they close schools or delay them. Maybe they would understand what those of us with private sector jobs have to endure.

As a mom, I would much prefer to get the kids home before the flooding and visibility get worse...I completely agree with the early closing!

Why not close for Rain!! They close for snow, they close for heat, and they close for teacher meetings, why, they even close for the flu. And, we wonder why Maryland school children are failing. If schools must close every time someone sneezes, keep them open longer in the summer. What about the poor working parents!!

As a student, I'm pro-early-dismissal but I guess I'm partially biased in that way. Anyway, getting out 2 hours does help since the roads do get worse as the day goes on and the fact that the school's roof's are leaking. Not trying to knock down on my school or anything but it's not in the greatest condition with the leaking and the squirrel that was in my tech class today that apparently, when pointed out to my teacher, had been there since Monday. Just saying.

I attended a small parochial high school served by an independent private bus company. The school and bus company could never get on the same page concerning weather, early dismissals, etc. Many times, these busses would simply travel down the driveway and onto the road without the students. Watching the busses leave knowing you were walking a long way home in inclement conditions on country roads made for real memories. In today's world both the school and bus company would be sued.

So your going to leave one bus driver liable for 30+ children, idiots on the road around the bus and flash flooding... In addition, not every road in every county is PAVED either... Lets rule on the side of safety...

FR: Isn't that the case no matter when the driver leaves the school? And where in the Baltimore area do school buses travel on dirt roads?

I think that the area schools should not have been open today. driving conditions were extremely poor this morning which always makes me nervous when children wait along the road for their buses. Now, instead of being safe at home the children will be WALKING home or riding a bus in worse conditions than they started with at 8:00 this morning. I understand that people think that Marylander's are weak for calling off school, etc. but this is serious weather and risky to all on the roads.

FR:
It is true that bus drivers are routinely subjected to all thee above as part of their job, however; considering all the traffic accidents w/in the past two days due to inclement weather (i.e. RAIN) the correct action to take is to release children from school for their own safety prior to conditions deteriorating.

Yes, there are numerous unpaved roads that are packed gravel in many counties... Maybe you should take a drive around the state or talk to bus drivers?

We live in Harford County. Many roads are completely covered by rivers and creeks. Some roads are under 3 feet of water and cannot be driven over without going down the river. Only one way to the school was not under water. However, that route should be under water by 3pm. If Harford County schools did not let out at 1pm, our children would be trapped at school. Since the forecast is for the rain to continue, Harford County was smart to let them out early.
I am a believer that we shouldn't let kids out for any minor issues but this flooding is getting serious.

why not have a "liberal leave" policy like many workplaces have? Let people who really want their kids home early come get them without penalty but those who cannot and who know that their kids will be safe later know that the children can stay at the school. Figure out the riskiest places for driving and recommend that the parents come for those children.

Or, some other system which doesn't involve disrupting all the parents.

I have been in Maryland for a while now, but grew up on Long Island. In NY, we were the opposite extreme - never closed for anything. I remember walking to school in close to a foot of snow (I sound like an old man now), and we probably should have been closed on those days.
The way closures were handled when I was growing up (and I believe are still the way today) is by school district and not county. I view this as a better way than closing an entire county. The problem today is some parts of the county are underwater and should have the ability to let their kids go home early. But then there are other areas that have had little impact by this storm other than your normal flooding. If we allowed each "district" to decide, we might have eliminated unnecessary closures. Same with the snow, flu and excessive heat (this one kills me - seriously, excessive heat? I was told the schools down here even have air condition - sounds more like a cost savings than a benefit for the kids!)
Unfortunately, it seems the counties down here act as one brain and organization when it comes to everything from closures to starting and ending school dates, so it might not be such an easy answer (and maybe not the best answer after all - I am not part of the administration, so I certainly don't have all the facts).
As far as the liberal leave suggestion, I also thought about that idea. As a parent, you should be able to get your kids whenever you feel they are in danger, so I think liberal leave is a given. The problem is I wouldn't want to officially put that option out there from an administration stand-point. Relying on that causes the kids taken out of school to end up missing out on their education those days and that is not fair to them. Also, what about the teachers - would they have the same liberal leave? It just becomes more of a logistic nightmare. Let the parents decide when the school is not making the right call and have to get their kids, don't necessarily make it an official "liberal leave" day.
I don't knock the counties for all the closures, but I do think there are times they go to the extreme. To be fair, I also think back on my childhood, and believe my district use to go to the other extreme (so I have seen it both ways). There was definitely some validity to closing certain areas today given the conditions. The last thing I would ever want to do is put kids in unnecessary risk. I just think this was a case where the entire county didn't need to shut down.

Absolutely ridiculous. This is crazy! RAIN! ... Are you kidding me RAIN...not a hurricane...just RAIN! Yes there was and will be flooding. But to close down schools because a few of the thousands of miles the busses will travel could have standing water. What is wrong with a detour? What about the parents that have to leave there jobs early? We are creating a generation of wimps.

As a student living in one of the counties that closed, I can say I was a bit shocked at first that school was letting out early. Then, I saw the rain. Roads all around the area were covered with inches of water. As the day went on, it got even worse. It had been heavily raining since the night before. Not just a drizzle.

People in older generations maybe think we are "wimps" but they should remember, when they had our school, it was brand new. No leaks, no clogged systems, no trailers added on to the school, even our fire alarms need work EVERY week. No exaggeration. Our building is over 50 years old. And no, we don't have A/C. We aren't spoiled. We have a terrible building. A general lack of ventilation as well. We have kids pass out all the time from heat.

So when the roof leaks, and our roads - not all of which are paved and are mostly back roads - start to flood, forgive us if we'd rather go home.

Frank,
Not just the "Baltimore Area" got let out, but Baltimore county as well as other more rural areas. This area includes many back roads, dirt roads, and other roads dangerous normally, but even more so with flooding. If you think that two hours won't make a difference in conditions, maybe you should be the one to drive a school bus on these roads in these conditions. Not a car, a bus. Good luck!

Harford Countian here... I just drove home from work in a driving, no-visibility rainstorm on I-95 (about 12:45 AM Friday). Once I got close to home, the rain had tapered off. All was well, until I drove into about 8 inches of standing water that I couldn't see because the street light was out.

Close schools? Open them late Friday? You tell me... has this water crested yet? That 8" of water almost killed my car.

Keep in mind the number of students that Baltimore County and other districts serve. Also keep in mind that though many of those students take the bus or are picked up, there is still a considerable number of students who walk home. On top of that, some schools don't actually get dismiss until 4pm. It is important that every single student gets home safely. So I can see why school districts would want to get an early start to making sure that students are off the roads before rush hour.