Victor Cardenas, assistant city manager for the city of Novi, was on the phone letting me know that there had been a massive water main break and that the city was experiencing a water emergency.
Closing the schools was not only the best option, it was the only option that day.
Novi now had water pressure throughout the city, but it was not as strong as it was before the water main break.
Water was still not safe to drink.
For the Novi Community School District, closing Oct. 24 used up one of those emergency days.
When word came late Oct. 24 that Novi had water pressure but the water was still not safe to drink, a decision had to be made.
Will students be safe as they walk to and from school?
The water emergency was a bit different.
The focus was, as it always is, on safety — for our students and our staff.
But instead of the weather, the decision revolved around whether or not we could hold school without drinking water.