Crime & Safety

Blizzard Forces Early School Closings; OEM Reminds Residents of Generator Safety

Public and parochial schools plan early dismissal for Friday, Feb. 8 due to the winter storm warning.

With more than 12 inches of snow predicted Friday into Saturday, all RiverDell area public schools are planning ahead by having an early dismissal for all schools on Feb. 8 according to each district's website.

River Dell Regional will close at 12:10pm, Oradell Public School will close at 12:13pm, and Cherry Hill, Roosevelt and New Bridge Center students will be dismissed at 12:4pm.

St. Joseph School will close at noon and has cancelled its aftercare program, while St. Peter Academy is set to close at 12:30pm and has also cancelled both aftercare and afternoon chess club.

Find out what's happening in River Dellwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Bergen Catholic is currently open but has announced all weekend athletics are postponed until further notice. All River Dell athletics have been rescheduled to next week.

The National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning for eastern Bergen County beginning Friday morning. The weather service predicts snow accumulation of 10 to 14 inches, the heaviest snow is expected to hit Friday evening into Saturday morning.

Find out what's happening in River Dellwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Barry Leventhal of the Bergen Office of Emergency Management recommended that residents prepare emergency supplies including food and water for three days, as well as a radio and batteries. Residents should also check on any elderly neighbors, he said.

Residents will generators are reminded to place any generator away from your home due to Carbon Monoxide fumes.

"Carbon Monoxide is odorless, tasteless and it kills," River Edge OEM Coordinator Tom Smith said. "If you have a generator, it can not be run inside any structure, either your home or garage. It has to be outside and pointed away from your house."

Also all residential vehicles must be parked in a driveway until the storm has passed to allow River Edge and Oradell DPW employees access to all streets for plowing.

Residents can report outages to PSE&G at 1-800-436-7734 or to O&R at 1-877-434-4100.

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