Schools Closed Friday, VRE Cancels Service, Shelter Remains Open

After nearly a week of heavy rains, Prince William County has declared a local state of emergency. Prince William County Schools will be closed Friday with a code green for employees.  

Virginia Rail Express has canceled all rail service for Friday, "portions of both rail lines are currently under water, and there is at least one area where the track bed has washed out from under the tracks."

PRTC will be operational, said communications director Jason Grant, but will not have the capacity to handle all VRE passengers.

From PWCS on what a code green actually means: 

Annual leave may be requested by those employees unable to report for work (liberal leave). Students, teachers on less than 12-month contracts, teacher aides, bus drivers, bus driver attendants, cafeteria workers and other less than 12-month classified employees shall not report for work.

Red Cross volunteers were setting up cots in the cafeteria of Woodbridge Senior High School just after 11 p.m. on Thursday to accomodate evacuees from the two mobile homes off of Route 1. While there were only a handful of cars in the school's parking lot, the shelter will remain open all night for evacuees. 

Boxes of supplies were being trucked into the school while residents were checked in to the school's emergency center, mostly in pajamas with suitcases. 

PRTC will be operational, but will not have the capacity to handle all VRE passengers. Virginia Department of Transportation advises that parts of Route 1 are impassable due to flooding.  

Prince William County has declared liberal leave for all employees.

The heavy rain has claimed at least one death in the area.In Occoquan, residents' homes and