Sarasota County schools closed on Friday

All Sarasota County public schools will be closed Friday, Sept. 8, due to the possibility of Hurricane Irma affecting southwest Florida. 

The closure will affect regular school day activities, as well as extra-curricular events. After-school and extra-curricular activities on Thursday will continue as usual. 

“The safety of students, parents and the community is always our first concern,” said Superintendent Todd Bowden in a statement. “As a precaution and because some schools serve as emergency shelters, we are closing schools Friday. We will continue to keep a close eye on Hurricane Irma and will make any future weather-related decisions in close consultation with our partners at Sarasota County Emergency Management.”

A decision on possible school closings for next week will be made during the weekend. Hurricane Irma is could make landfall in Florida as early as Friday evening.  

Some sporting events that were scheduled for Friday had previously been rescheduled.