What Will It Take To Get Kids In Class?

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Hundreds of Central Ohio schools still were without power Wednesday evening, and Columbus City Schools has cancelled classes for a fourth day -- Thursday.

NBC 4's Mikaela Hunt gets answers on what it will take to get students back in the classroom.

Hunt remained in close contact with several school districts Wednesday in an effort to determine why it has been so tough to get students back in school.

The Martin family teamed up to clean up. With two kids out of school, yard cleanup is a productive way to pass the time.

The Martin's power has been restored, and Sharon Martin is wondering why her little learners aren't back in the classroom.

Martin said the family has been sitting and waiting for word. She hasn’t gotten much more than what's been on the news, she said.

In the Columbus City Schools district, 46 buildings still do not have power, but the 17th Avenue Transportation Center and the Kingswood Data Center are both powered. Those are two key buildings. District officials met at 4 p.m. and made the decision to close again Thursday. 

AEP told the district that even with many buildings back up, there's still a possibility the power source will be "unstable." That's a concern. 

The next problem is related to making sure systems in the schools, such as fire alarms, are functioning properly.

Worthington City Schools wants its students back but told Hunt it's not that easy. Only three of the district's schools don't have power, but each facility is being checked for damage.

The facility management team was at Worthington Kilbourne making sure freezers can keep food at the right temperature and chillers will be able to sustain the air-conditioning system.

Many other districts Hunt spoke with face the same concerns.

Reynoldsburg City Schools doesn't have generators. It has fire alarms in powered buildings that are not working. Phone systems also are down in some of those buildings. AEP told the district Tuesday that power would be back on Friday, at the earliest, to all district schools. 

The superintendent told Hunt the district is willing to explore some creative options that could include putting students at schools with outages into powered schools by Friday. But nothing was definite.

Newark City Schools said its students will be back in class Thursday after a two-hour late start. The delay already was planned due to a staff meeting. It said staff has been checking on systems affected by the outage all week.

While the district lost a lot of food in coolers, its freezers still are good. At one point, a "plan B" was to get kids back in with a local pizza place providing food. The district won't have to do that, though.

The district said it's been easy to assess potential power outage problems because it's not winter and it doesn't have to deal with frozen pipes and other elements.

AEP & SCHOOLS

AEP said it's getting schools without power back up as quickly as possible but there are additional hazards.

"Even if the schools are energized, there may be traffic-control items or signals that are out of service where the kids are driving and parents are walking," AEP Customer Services Manager Chuck Jennings said.

Hunt reported that Jennings is working with CCS to update the district on schools' statuses.

Each school is on a different circuit; AEP can't get all schools powered at the same time.

Here's an important note: If a school is on a line that has only 50 residences with it and another area has hundreds of outages on another line, the area with hundreds of outages will get a crew first. AEP focuses on the greater number of people affected.

SOUTH CENTRAL POWER & SCHOOLS

SCP said it can't target individual schools because restoration depends on how power flows on its lines. So, if a school were at the end of a line, it may take more time to get them back up. In the meantime, it has an "energy advisor" who is assigned to individual schools. That way, schools can receive information on outages faster.

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