If an eruption occurs and ashfall is expected while school is in session the District will most likely proceed with an early dismissal.  Early dismissal will mean that families will be contacted to pick up their children before the normal dismissal time.  Bus transportation will NOT be provided and students must be picked up by a parent, guardian, or other authorized individual as soon as possible.  

If an eruption happens outside school hours and ashfall is expected, MSBSD will assess the conditions and close school if unsafe for students and staff.  This decision will depend on the amount of ash accumulation and the clean up efforts that will be required.  If school is closed MSBSD will follow the normal school cancellation procedures and communication will occur similarly to any other school cancellation.  

MSBSD will follow normal school cancellation procedures if school is closed due to an eruption.  This will include the decision to allow after school activities or any scheduled facility use.  

 MSBSD does not plan to implement remote learning if school is closed due to an eruption.  However, depending on the amount of ashfall and the length of the potential closure this may change.  If remote learning will be used, families will receive communication regarding the schedule and expectations for remote learning.  

The District will communicate a school closure due to an eruption in the same way we do for closures caused by inclement weather. Families will be notified by text message, phone call, and email, based on the contact information provided during student registration. In addition, we will post information and updates on our website, Facebook, Instagram, and the District mobile app. To confirm your contact information is up to date, please navigate to the “How to check my current address/phone number used for school notifications?” section of this linked MSBSD Knowledge Base article.

The most widespread hazard to people from volcanic eruptions in Alaska is from volcanic ashfall. Volcanic ashfall has a variety of impacts, which depend on how much ash is deposited, and this will vary by location. Volcanic ash can impair visibility while it is falling (and afterwards as it is remobilized by wind or driving), is slippery (especially when wet) and can cause mechanical issues to automobiles and other machinery. It is hard and abrasive, so it can scratch surfaces and irritate eyes. Volcanic ash presents an air quality concern, especially if the particles are very fine-grained. People with existing respiratory or heart conditions should seek medical guidance regarding risk associated with ashfall. 

An eruption would be explosive and make an airborne ash cloud that could be seen across Cook Inlet. Up to ¼ inch of ash fell on southcentral communities during the last 2 eruptions of Spurr so depending on wind direction, this could happen. The timing of ashfall will depend on wind speed and direction. The NWS Anchorage Forecast Office would issue information about where, when and how much ashfall to expect. If an eruption occurred during daylight hours, the ash cloud would block out the sun while the ash cloud drifted overhead resulting in total darkness for potentially hours. There would certainly be impacts to aviation through flight cancellation and airport closures due to the airborne ash cloud and ashfall at airports. Impacts to people in communities would be from ashfall which could take one to a few hours to reach communities and fallout could occur for several hours.