LUMBERTON, NC (WBTW) – All Robeson County schools remain closed due to the damage and flooding caused by Hurricane Matthew.
District spokesperson Tasha Oxendine says there’s still no official date for when students will return. The principal at West Lumberton Elementary says flooding at her school was so bad, the school could not be reached for a week.
Robeson County has 89 roads which are still impacted or were damaged by the storm. Oxendine says school bus drivers ran their bus routes on Friday and Saturday to survey if the routes were passible and what hazards remained. Now transportation staff are working to reroute bus routes in areas where roads are closed.
West Lumberton is one of three schools which suffered extensive flood damage.Water was three feet deep in some areas. but as the cleanup continues, the community is offering its support.
“We have been extremely blessed so many people have reached out to us individuals companies other schools just wanting to adopt us and I feel strongly that it will be that kind of help that will help us get back on our feet,” principal Tara Bullard said.
North Carolina will allow schools in the district to re-open on a staggered schedule and decisions will be made on a school-by-school basis.
