Bend-La Pine Schools will continue its rolling openings of schools tomorrow, Thursday, January 19, as Lava Ridge Elementary, Ponderosa Elementary, Pacific Crest Middle, and REALMS schools reopen.

Four schools will remain closed on Thursday: Elk Meadow, Pine Ridge and W.E. Miller elementary schools and Pilot Butte Middle School.

In all, the following facilities will open tomorrow at their regular time:

Administration – Education Center
Amity Creek at Thompson School
Bear Creek Elementary
Buckingham Elementary
Ensworth Elementary
High Lakes Elementary
Highland at Kenwood School
Juniper Elementary
La Pine Elementary

Lava Ridge Elementary

Ponderosa Elementary
R.E. Jewell Elementary
Rosland Elementary
Silver Rail Elementary
Three Rivers School
Westside Village at Kingston School
Cascade Middle
High Desert Middle
La Pine Middle

Pacific Crest Middle
Sky View Middle
Bend Senior High
La Pine High
Marshall High
Mountain View High
Summit High
Tamarack
Transition Co-op
Maintenance
Transportation, Bend
Transportation, La Pine
Warehouse – Distribution
Bend International School
REALMS

Elk Meadow, Pine Ridge and W.E. Miller elementary schools and Pilot Butte Middle School remain closed

School-specific Information:

At Elk Meadow, Pine Ridge and W.E. Miller elementary schools, areas of the roof have too much accumulated snow and compacted ice to reopen. Today the district brought in new pieces of machinery, which are basically giant steamers, to help melt the snow and ice. This work will continue tomorrow.

At Pilot Butte, large amounts of snow remain on the roof of multiple buildings. The school, which is located north of Pilot Butte, is significantly shaded and is not benefitting from the sun, which is warming and melting snow from many sites. We are continuing to mobilize crews to remove snow, according to plans from our structural engineering team.

At Lava Ridge, crews are working under lights throughout the night to ensure the school’s opening for tomorrow.

“We have retained the continued services of structural engineers, who are working with us to monitor our progress,” said Mikalson. “They will continue to be out with our crews as they work to open schools as soon as possible.”

On-going Snow, Ice and Water Mitigation

As anticipated, some of our schools experienced water leakage today as a result of warming temperatures and snow runoff. We do anticipate further leaking to occur throughout the coming days and have asked staff to do the following:

Outdoors:

Continue to knock down icicles and clear ice dams as they build up around entrances and walkways. Continue to keep roof drains clear and ensure there are no ice dams on eaves.

At schools with upper roofs that can shed snow onto lower roofs: Before school each morning, and again after school, check for excessive sliding or drifting with concentrated snow loads that may be in the valleys or built up behind obstructions.

At schools with flat roofs: Check scuppers and downspouts to confirm water is flowing and clear any ice or snow blockage.

Indoors:

Monitor any interior roof leaks and identify location on top of roof in order to clear ice damming, check for drywall cracks or ceiling tile sagging.

“I’m grateful to all of our staff members for their dedication during this challenging time,” said Superintendent Shay Mikalson. “From the teachers returning to classrooms to custodians continuing to remove ice dams from our roofs to our staff members patiently anticipating a return to school, I want to say thank you!”

Our Frequently Asked Questions has been updated and is available for review at Alerts and Updates webpage. That page includes a link to our Snow Removal document that shows snow removal progress to date. This document will be updated daily on our website at about 5 p.m. until work is compete.