HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Some schools and businesses are changing their schedules on March 26 due to the risk of severe weather.
These may change based on weather conditions on March 26.
Schools:
DeKalb County Schools: Two hour delay on March 26, 2021.
Fort Payne City Schools: Buses will run two and a half hours later than normal. We will not serve breakfast.
March 25, 2021:
Closings and cancellations updates:
Huntsville Havoc: March 25 game postponed, online Jersey Auction will happen as scheduled.
Huntsville Botanical Garden: Closed at 12:00 p.m. on March 25.
Huntsville Utilities: Huntsville Utilities will close its main lobby (112 Spragins Street) and the Pulaski Pike Payment Center at 2:00pm today.
City of Athens: Offices are closing at 2:00 p.m. on March 25.
U.S. Space and Rocket Center will close at noon on March 25.
Limestone County: All Limestone County Commission offices, including the Courts, will close at 12:00 noon today, March 25, 2021.
Marshall Space Flight Center: Closed at 12:00 p.m., March 25.
Redstone Federal Credit Union® branches in Alabama and Fayetteville, Tenn., are closing today at 12:30 p.m. due to the threat of inclement weather.
Schools
Alabama A&M: Alabama A&M University will telework and remote learning classes for Thursday, March 25.
Arab City Schools: Dismissing early at 12 p.m. on March 25. No after-school activities.
Athens City Schools: Early release on March 25:
- Pre-K at 11:00 am
- K-3 at 11:15 am
- AIS at 11:30 am
- AHS at 11:30 am
- ARS at 11:30 am
- AMS at 11:40 am
Buses will run according to the release schedule.
The storm shelter at Athens High School will open after school is dismissed if a tornado watch is issued. Masks are required. Find shelter information and rules at www.acs-k12.org/shelter
Athens State University: Closing at noon on March 25.
Big Cove Christian Academy: Closing at 12 p.m. on March 25.
Cullman County Schools: Campuses will be CLOSED Thursday, March 25. Classes will be held virtually.
Decatur City Schools: Dismissing early:
Elementary will dismiss at 11:45 & secondary at 12:30. All afternoon activities and programs (including Extended Day) system-wide are canceled for March 25, 2021.
Drake State: Remote learning is in place for Drake State students today. Employees report for 1/2 day and dismiss at 12 noon.
Franklin County (AL) Schools: Dismissing early at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, March 25.
Hartselle City Schools: Dismissing early. Buses will run regular routes.
Elementary: 11:30 a.m.
Intermediate: 11:40 a.m.
Junior High: 11:45 a.m.
High School: 11:55 a.m.
Extended Day and all after school activities are canceled for Thursday, March 25.
Heritage Christian University: Closed on March 25, 2021
Huntsville City Schools: Closed on March 25, 2021
Huntsville/Madison County Public Libraries: All branches closing at 12:00 p.m., Thursday, March 25.
University of Alabama in Huntsville: Virtual learning on March 25.
Jackson County Schools: Dismissing two hours early on March 25, 2021.
Lawrence County Schools: Dismissing at noon on Thursday, March 25, 2021.
Limestone County Schools: Dismissing early, Thursday, March 25, 2021. Elementary students will be released at 11:10 a.m. followed by high school at 11:30 a.m.
Lincoln County Schools: Dismissing early at 12:30 p.m. on March 25. Check individual schools for information regarding car rider dismissal.
Lindsay Lane Christian Academy: Dismissing early at 11:40 a.m., 11:50 a.m. and 12 p.m.
Madison County Schools: Closed on March 25, 2021
Madison City Schools: Closed on March 25, 2021
Morgan County Schools: Remote instruction on March 25.
Russellville City Schools: Dismissing early at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, March 25.
Scottsboro City School: Dismissing two hours early on March 25, 2021.
St. John Paul II Catholic School: Remote learning on March 25. No after-school activities.
YMCA Early Childhood Education Centers:
YMCA Early Childhood Education Centers will close early at 11 a.m. on Thursday, March 25 due to anticipated severe weather.
Affected facilities include the YMCA Downtown Early Childhood Education Center, YMCA Northwest Early Childhood Education Center, and the YMCA Southeast Early Childhood Education Center.
YMCA Branches will close early at Noon and all programs after 12 p.m. are cancelled for the day including Afterschool Care, Virtual Learners Camp, Swim Lessons, and sports.
Businesses
EarlyWorks Children's Museum: Closed today Thursday, March 25, 2021 due to the threat of severe weather.
Huntsville Hospital’s Community Vaccination Clinic at John Hunt Park will close at noon today, March 25, due to the threat of severe weather. Persons who have afternoon vaccination appointments may come anytime on Friday, March 26, or Monday, March 29. No appointment or phone call needed.
Huntsville Ice Sports Center: Closed today, Thursday, March 25th.
Huntsville Municipal Court: Due to the threat of severe storms and flooding, the 5:30 p.m. Night Court docket for Huntsville Municipal Court has been postponed.
Huntsville Visitor Centers: closing at 12:30 p.m. March 25
Lowe Mill Arts & Entertainment: Closes at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 25.
Make your severe weather preparations now
With the chance for severe weather this week, it’s important for you to be ready, too. If you haven’t yet, nail down your emergency plan before Thursday.
With storms come a high chance of power outages. Make sure your emergency kit is ready with batteries, flashlights, water, and non-perishable snacks.
Have multiple ways of getting weather alerts. You can tune into WZDX News, listen to a weather radio, and download the WZDX app. Make sure to turn on your notifications.
Know where you're going to take shelter, whether that’s in your home or somewhere else. Consider finding a safe space at a community shelter if you live in a mobile home.
With COVID-19 still spreading, wear a mask if you must use a public shelter.
For a list of shelters in North Alabama, click here.
Preparing your home for severe weather
"Bring inside any of those loose items that are outside or tuck them real close to your house that could become flying debris, that's step number one. So, basically, take a walk around your house and look for some of those loose items and see what you can move and bring inside," said Dr. Ian Giammanco, lead research meteorologist with the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety.
Then there's protecting your vehicle.
"A good option too with hail also as a threat, if you've got a garage, make sure you can get your car in there. A lot of us, just like me like to store things in our garage but see if you can clean it out and get your car under cover," said Giammanco.
"Find that interior room whether it's a closet or a bathroom, basically the center of your home, lowest floor, and put as many walls between you and the outside as possible. So think about this, a 2x4 can go through an exterior wall even if it's got brick veneer on the outside but chances are, it's gonna take a lot more to get through multiple walls to where you are," said Giammanco.
With this severe weather making its way to the valley, the possibility of your home being damaged increases. There are some things you should do before and after to protect you and your home if it's damaged in this weather.
"The word of the day if you think about your insurance policy is document, document, document," said Giammanco.
It's important to document the state of your home before any possible damage occurs.
"Go around your house with your cell phone and take pictures of all your valuable items, your appliances, your televisions, all the things of value that you wanna make sure you've documented, make sure you've got the geotagging, all the timestamp stuff going on your cell phone and that can make the claims process, if something happens to your home, much smoother," said Giammanco.
If your home does get damaged, there is something you need to do immediately and something you need to look out for.
"The first person you should call if you think you have damage is your insurance agent. Make sure you have their phone numbers stored in your cell phone and call them immediately and be very wary of contractors that show up, within you know, 12, 18 hours of a storm, they may not have great documentation. We just don't want people to get taken advantage of and we see that from time to time after these big severe weather events," said Giammanco.
Let's say you've suffered damage, what can you do to avoid being scammed by someone when getting your house repaired?
"When you're out there looking for a potential contractor to help repair your home, look for somebody in your local community. Chances are they're reputable, everyone knows them, you're gonna avoid that potential for that kind of fly-by-night fraud scenarios that we actually see from time to time. And also make sure that they are essentially licensed and bonded and have their own insurance, that's a good indicator that they're a reputable company," said Giammanco.