JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – More than month after originally heading back to school, thousands of students across Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia are again heading back to class, this time thanks to a week-long break for Hurricane Irma.
Schools in every county except Baker will reopen Monday. Students and parents were warned that debris could be crowding sidewalks and streets for students who walk to and from class. In a few cases, bus stops were relocated due to hurricane debris or the aftermath of flooding.
Several schools were open last week -- used as emergency shelters. Those were cleaned and dozens of other schools needed power restored, hurricane damage repaired and roads reopened before school could resume.
Storm debris, including and tree limbs, wood, and even broken glass, line most streets in the area. In some places, it covers sidewalks children use to walk to school
"My concern is there is a lot we can't see that lies beneath the surface, in the gutters, in the drains," resident Charlotte Cudd said. "We've seen moccasins at night."
Baker County
The district's schools are closed through Monday. Administrators said Friday that the county had a lot of roads that are still impassable and thousands of homes without power.
Free school meals for next month
All students in counties included in the FEMA major disaster declaration -- which includes all of northeast Florida -- can receive free breakfast and lunch through Oct. 20, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Monday.
"During this time, families will not have to worry about providing lunch to their children as they focus on recovery," Duval County Public Schools wrote in a release announcing the free meals.
This program potentially impacts over 3,000 schools and 2.5 million children.