Florida districts set different school closures as Isaias nears

Florida’s education department listed school closures or schedule changes in 14 districts on Thursday, Oct. 8, as Hurricane Isaias approached the northern Gulf Coast. Four districts were listed closed Oct. 8–9, two scheduled a Thursday noon dismissal and a Friday closure, and eight listed a Friday closure.

The schedules affect named districts, not schools statewide. Florida State University also announced location-specific changes, including closures in Panama City and Pensacola and a later Friday plan for Tallahassee.

District schedules vary by county

The current state listing names Bay, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties for Oct. 8–9 closures. Washington and Gulf counties were scheduled to dismiss students at noon Oct. 8 and close Oct. 9. Escambia, Gadsden, Jackson, Liberty, Calhoun, Franklin, Holmes and Taylor counties were listed closed Oct. 9.

The different dates mean some district communities faced two days without classes, while others had a Friday-only closure or an early dismissal before Friday off. An Oct. 7 Action News Jax report about an earlier Bay County listing said Friday and Monday were already scheduled fall-break days. The current state listing gives Bay County closure dates of Oct. 8–9.

FSU announcements cover several locations

FSU listed its Panama City campus and Collegiate School in Panama City closed Oct. 8–9. The university said essential business operations would continue at those locations and expected normal classes and business operations to resume Monday, Oct. 12. It directed students to Canvas for course updates. FSU’s College of Medicine regional campus in Pensacola was also listed closed Oct. 8–9.

A separate FSU notice posted at 11:20 a.m. Eastern time Thursday set the Tallahassee plan for Friday, Oct. 9: classes and work would be remote from 8 a.m. to noon. After noon, classes would be canceled and normal business operations suspended, while essential business operations continued. FSU also scheduled its Coastal and Marine Lab in St. Teresa to close Friday. These notices apply to specific locations, not all Florida schools or FSU campuses.

Storm warnings covered part of the Gulf Coast

In its 1 a.m. CDT Thursday advisory, the National Hurricane Center reported maximum sustained winds of 75 mph, movement east-northeast at 9 mph and a position about 445 miles south-southwest of the mouth of the Mississippi River. The center expected additional intensification. Those numbers describe conditions at the time of that advisory, not necessarily later conditions.

An early Thursday NHC warning product listed a hurricane warning from Ocean Springs, Mississippi, to the Bay and Gulf county line in Florida. A storm-surge warning extended from the mouth of the Mississippi River to the Steinhatchee River in Florida. The storm’s eventual track and landfall remained uncertain at the time of the advisory.