School Closing Outlooks For Thursday 01/29/2026 & Friday 01/30/2026
- Jonah Drake (Owner & Co-Founder)
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Updated: 24 hours ago
Day 1 School Closing Outlook Results
Forecast Results Issued: Thursday, January 29, 2026, 9:12 AM
We still think our eyes might be playing tricks on us, but we can confirm that there were no weather-related closings or delays across the area today. For some students, this might be the first time in 8 or 9 school days that they are returning to class after West Michigan was pummeled by near-constant snow, blowing snow, lake-effect snow, and extreme cold.
Day 1 School Closing Outlook
Forecast Valid: Thursday, January 29, 2026
Forecast Issued: Wednesday, January 28, 2026, 3:35 PM
Forecasters: Jonah Drake
Summary:
There is a “Limited” risk (level 2/6) for school closings or delays on Thursday due to additional snow accumulations, poor secondary roadway conditions, and potentially dangerously cold temperatures.
Discussion:
A few isolated school closures or delays will be possible once again on Thursday morning across parts of West Michigan due to lingering impacts from the ongoing lake-effect snow, cold wind chills, and continued poor secondary roadway conditions.
New snow accumulations should generally be confined to our lakeshore counties along I-196 and US-31 and will range from 1 to 3 inches, with a few locally higher amounts possible, particularly in and around South Haven, as well as areas north of Hart. In these two regions, snowfall totals, especially by the afternoon on Thursday, may range from 3 to 6 inches.
For the two aforementioned areas, have maintained poor confidence, but have upgraded the overall risk to a level 2/6 “Limited” risk, indicating a 15-30% risk of closures or delays in these areas.
Farther inland, as well as in more rural areas, secondary roadway conditions and bitterly cold, potentially dangerous wind chills become more of the primary threat rather than additional new snow accumulations.
Wind chills along and east of US-131 north of I-96 on Thursday morning will fall well below zero, particularly north of M-46 between US-131 and M-66, where values could fall into the -15°F to -20°F range.
Graphical Forecast:
Day 2 School Closing Outlook
Forecast Valid: Friday, January 30, 2026
Forecast Issued: Wednesday, January 28, 2026, 4:02 PM
Forecasters: Jonah Drake
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