Today Fieldston students were drowned, not in schoolwork, but in a torrential downpour leading to flooding all over. Hearing the students’ hopes, the administration announced an early dismissal.
All around the school, there was water. It was a “deluge.” Since Fieldston is so old, hilly and filled with odd angles, on top of one of Riverdale’s highest peaks, there was flooding in old places but there was flooding in new places too. Like in the Tate Library and all throughout the 100s, specifically the history offices. Mr. Tom Carey, one of the librarians at Fieldston, knew the flooding was due to storm size. “This type of flooding never happens when there’s a normal rain,” he said, “This is a major rain.” Facilities were able to come quickly and do their best to vacuum up the water, but not before students snapped some photos. Facilities will continue to address this issue with some work on the roof this weekend. Hopefully, after that, there will be less flooding in the library. According to Carey, “The major problem isn’t the water but the musty smell that is left behind afterward.” The only things making the library smell musty should be books not floods!
Around 12:30, during freshman/sophomore lunch, murmurs began spreading through the packed cafeteria. “Is it true? There’s early dismissal? Wait, school always ends at 2:00 right?” The rumors were true. An email was sent out alerting everyone to the early dismissal at 2 p.m. Once it was confirmed, cheers and high-fives erupted for the early start to the weekend.
Head of School Joe Algrant was glad but mostly for student safety. “Closing early would get everybody home safer and in a shorter time,” says Algrant. It was a debate all morning but he says, “In the end, the notion that the flooding possibilities were going to get worse throughout the day, the longer we waited, the greater the risk, that was the deciding factor.”
Overall, students were pleased with the decision to dismiss early. Natalie Evans (Form IV) says, “It’s a great idea and I’m with it.” Her fellow sophomores Chloe Salgado (Form IV) and Jeein Chung (Form IV) agreed. “I think it should happen more,” says Salgado. Agreeing, Chung says, “[The early dismissal] keeps people safe while also letting them have a great start to their weekend.” Not all students were happy, with some groaning about how late the decision came. Emma Medvedsek was among them saying, “It was a good decision but we should have left earlier. We’re leaving at 2 pm but the rain is supposed to be most intense at that same time. They should have done dismissed a lot earlier.” Is Emma truly worried about her commute or suffering from early senioritis? The world may never know.
Lots of students had issues with the buses. After-school activities, such as athletics and the fall drama, were canceled, and the buses were fuller than usual. It took a while for the buses to leave and routes were changed. Uma Couchman (Form V) complained, “It was so disorganized. There were too many kids on the buses and some people had three to a seat. I know some people were even left stranded at school.” To Fieldston Students, crazy bus experiences are nothing new, but the rain added a certain level of pandemonium today.
It was a wild and wet day on the Fieldston campus. It is unusual for schools to close during rain, and perhaps there may be more closures as rains and storms continue to get heavier. This winter there will most likely be some closures related to snow. Regardless of how each student feels, the important part of today is that everyone got home safe and dry. Fieldston students will live to see the sunshine another day!
