Buses to dozens of Valley schools delayed due to fog

TULARE, Calif. (KFSN) -- About three dozen schools reported foggy day schedules on Tuesday morning, many of them in the South Valley.

A dense fog advisory was in effect until early afternoon. The National Weather Service in Hanford says visibilities ranged from below 200 feet to 800 feet.

So in many parts of the Valley, students had to get a ride to school or wait a little longer for their bus.

For the second day in a row, Tulare City School District Transportation Supervisor Luis Espinoza made the call to delay bus 19 - a bus that has a more rural route - by two hours.

Of the four foggy day school bus schedules, that's Plan B.

In Plan A, all district buses are delayed two hours.

School still starts on time, though.

So if late, students will have to catch up on their work.

Every day, Espinoza commutes from his home in Delano to his office on Cherry Street in Tulare.

The drive is an opportunity to think about what decision he'll make in conjunction with another transportation staff member.

"We're looking again at that visibility. All bus drivers are taught it, trained it by edcode, that under 200 feet, we may decide not to go," says Espinoza.

During this foggy time of year, Espinoza wants parents to be informed.

He says he likes to call a foggy day by 6:15 a.m.

Parents should then receive a call notification.

The information will also be posted on the district's website, on their Facebook page, and like other Valley school districts, Tulare City will also let ABC30 know, and we'll post the information on our website.

"They can also call us. We do have people answering the phones here at 6:30 in the morning in our transportation department, in our district office at 7:30. They can always feel free to call us and we'll be able to give you guys the information," Espinoza says.

Espinoza knows a foggy day schedule can throw off a family's morning routine.

But he hopes they'll be patient, and understand that above all, their priority is student safety.

More fog is expected for another week so make sure to keep a close eye on the foggy day schedules.