Update: School Closed Monday

Update: School has been cancelled for Monday.

Though many North Kingstown residents are still without power, only about a dozen people used Wickford Middle School as a shelter yesterday. According to Town Manager Michael Embury, the town closed down the shelter Sunday after only seeing 13 people the night before and four Sunday morning. They transported the remaining residents to a shelter in South Kingstown.

As of 1 p.m. Sunday, 4,677 of North Kingstown's 13,000 National Grid customers are without power. Power is expected to be restored to most of the state and area by the end of Sunday night. (Click here to view National Grid's outage map and restoration times.)

The town's public safety complex on Post Road (housing the North Kingstown Police Department, Fire Department and IT Department) is without power at this time as well. Crews will be working until 7 or 8 p.m. tonight to continue clearing the roads.

Also among those without power are three North Kingstown schools – Stony Lane Elemetnary, Suzanne M. Henseler Quidnessett Elemetnary and Wickford Middle School. Embury is recommending that Superintendent Phil Auger cancel school tomorrow to allow more streets to be cleared.

"Some streets will still be narrow and buses will have a difficult time making turns or getting into some neighborhoods," said Embury. "One more day will make a big difference."

According to Facebook posts, North Kingstown's firefighters responding to more than 50 calls during the storm, many of them downed wires and trees/branches. 

North Kingstowners may face another obstacle thanks to Mother Nature. Monday's forecast shows freezing rain, which may make snow removal even more problematic. Residents are encouraged to help clear areas around fire hydrants so emergency personnel can access them in the event of a fire.