Some schools in districts in the southern half of N.J. closed early Thursday and are considering closing Friday. Many northern schools remained open
At least three major New Jersey school districts have scheduled early dismissals for their students this week due to a heat and humidity wave sweeping the southern and central parts of the state.
New Brunswick public schools announced Thursday they they would let students at three of their elementary schools go early on Friday due to temperatures that could reach the mid-90s. The schools - Lincoln, Livingston and Roosevelt Elementary - were chosen for early release because they are the only buildings without air conditioning, according to Kurt Praschak, a spokesperson for the district. Praschak said the district did not yet know how early the students would be released.
On Thursday Camden City Schools made a similar decision, announcing that they were letting all students leave early at 1 p.m. Thursday afternoon because of high temperatures. Brendan Lowe, a spokesperson for the school district said officials are "keeping a close eye" on the temperatures for Friday. The school district had not made a decision by Thursday night on whether they would close the schools on Friday.
In anticipation of the heat, Trenton public schools announced Tuesday that they would let students go early each day of the week. Philadelphia public schools followed suit, announcing on Thursday that they would close early Friday afternoon because of the heat.
Another heat wave is on the way
The heat wave that prompted school closings has already seen temperatures rise to the mid-90s in many parts of New Jersey and it's expected to last through the day Friday. The National Weather Service issued a heat warning Thursday afternoon until 6 p.m. Friday night, which is aimed primarily at the southern part of the state and neighborhoods around Philadelphia.
The same concerns about high temperatures have not hit many major school districts in the northern half of the state. Spokesmen for Paterson, Elizabeth and Jersey City school districts said their schools were open all day Thursday and they had no plans to release students early on Friday.
"The first day of school went very smoothly in Jersey City and we did not need to close because of the heat," Maryann Dickar, a spokeswoman for Jersey City Schools said Thursday.
Praschak added that the rest of New Brunswick's schools would remain open all day Friday.
A representative for Newark Public Schools did not immediately return a message for comment Thursday.
AccuWeather has predicted that storms Friday night and Saturday could put a stop to the climbing temperatures this weekend.
Anna Merriman may be reached at amerriman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @anna_merriman.