On March 21st, 2024 at Chaudière-Appalaches, around 50 students and staff had to spend the night at school due to difficult weather conditions.  

Hauts-Sommets Elementary School, Saint-Joseph Elementary School, and Rencontre High School had to accommodate students for the night. “The decision to keep the students at school was taken around 8 pm given that roads were blocked,’’ Centre de Service Scolaire (CSS) explained. The snow reached 15-25 centimetres and gusts of wind up to 80km/h.  CSS chose to close most of the schools in that region except for those three. Ironically enough, they had to stay at school. 

The students had to find things they needed to sleep comfortably and food to eat. Locals who live near were informed about this situation and acted promptly. They helped the students and staff by handing them snacks and sleeping bags for the night. All three schools’ gymnasiums were open for activities so the kids and teenagers were not bored. They were even able to organize friendly competitions.

The next morning, the students returned safely home and CSS decided to close the schools in that region.