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Emergency Information
In the event of inclement weather or an emergency situation, the Puyallup School District takes every precaution to ensure the safety of students. District staff works continually with local police, sheriff, fire, and emergency management teams to improve and fine-tune district emergency plans.  Due to situations beyond our control, sometimes there is a need to close schools or modify their start times. The reasons for this are varied, but will most likely be due to ice, snow or power outages (due to downed power lines or utility brown-out for a given area).  Closures typically involve the whole school district. However, occasionally there is a need to close down an individual school due to an isolated problem.

Emergencies during school hours

The district has a centralized Emergency Operations Center (EOC), and each school site has a building EOC. These EOC teams have developed plans for and hold drills on a variety of crises including fire, earthquakes, Sheltering-In-Place, intruders, and lahar (valley schools). As part of these emergency plans, there are trained staff members in the schools to respond to emergencies. Depending on the type of emergency, decisions affecting schools will be made by district officials in collaboration with the Pierce County Sheriff and Puyallup Police Department. Please do not call the school, transportation department, or district office. If the phone lines are working, they will be used for emergency communication. The district will communicate decisions to parents via SchoolMessenger Communicate, and sometimes radio and television.   

Emergency announcements 

The following is an explanation of district announcements used during inclement weather or other emergency situations.

Closed or Schools Closed: No schools are in session in the Puyallup School District. This applies only to the day that the announcement is made. There is no out-of-district transportation. The district will communicate whether or not after-school and evening activities will be held.

Two-Hour Late Start: 

 • Monday - All Grades 
Elementary, junior high, high school, Options, Gateway, and Advance students will start school one hour later than their regular Monday late start bell schedules. Lunches will be served. Students will be dismissed at their normal Monday release times. Extended day preschool and a.m. Summit will not be held. 

 • Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday - All Grades In the event of a weather-related or other two-hour late start on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday, bus pick-up schedules will be two hours late, and buses will try to operate on all normal routes. Classes will dismiss at the normal time unless otherwise announced. 

Adverse weather conditions may lead to all schools and buses in the Puyallup School District starting two hours late. In this case, the following can be expected:

  • - there will be no morning (a.m.) or extended day preschool;
  • - afternoon (p.m.) preschool will begin and end school on regular time;
  • - there will be no morning (a.m.) Summit at Sparks Stadium;
  • - elementary band and orchestra will be canceled;
  • - there will be no out-of-district transportation;
  • - Right At School daycare also will run two hours late;
  • - lunches WILL BE served throughout the district.