Zhang Qian

zhqcindy@163.com

SEVERAL typhoons have raided Shenzhen, causing various degrees of damage since June this year and also triggering different kinds of weather alerts that have baffled many schools and parents as they decide whether they should attend school or not when there is a typhoon.

Regarding the confusing weather alerts that have been used for years, the city’s education bureau, emergency management office and meteorological bureau jointly issued an updated guideline to help schools and parents decide whether to keep children at home or send them to school on rainy or typhoon days.

The revised guideline further specifies the time ranges for different alerts, providing a more precise guideline for schools and parents. Several key updates of the guideline are listed below.

For the first time, the guideline has clarified that if an orange alert for rainstorms takes effect before or during school, normally from 6:30 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 12 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., students can stay home until the orange alert is canceled after informing the school. Schools shall not mark students absent while an orange rainstorm alert is in effect.

Also, the guideline segments the red alert for rainstorms and a yellow alert for typhoons into five time periods, namely before 6:30 a.m., between 6:30 a.m. and 8 a.m., 8 a.m. and 12 p.m., 12 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. and after 2:30 p.m.

Schools and parents will take various measures during the different time periods. For instance, if a red alert for rainstorms or a yellow alert for a typhoon is issued before 6:30 a.m., all schools, including kindergartens, will be suspended.

If the alert is issued between 6:30 and 8:00 a.m., schools will need to stay open to provide shelter for students who have already left home. For students who have not left home yet, parents should arrange for them to stay home until the alert is canceled.

In particular, the updated guideline specifies rules for boarding schools and nonboarding schools. In cases when a red alert for rainstorms is issued between 6:30 a.m. and 8 a.m. or 12 p.m. and 2:30 p.m., students in boarding schools and kindergartens shall stay at school, while students attending nonboarding schools shall stay at home.

The complete guideline can be viewed on the official portal of the Shenzhen Municipal Education Bureau: http://www.szeb.edu.cn/bsfw/fwxx2/xxaq/gbxxaq/201710/t20171018_9385651.htm.