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Fairfax County Public Schools will close Wednesday, Jan. 28, as lingering ice and extreme cold continue to hinder efforts to clear neighborhood roads and sidewalks after Winter Storm Fern.

The closure will be the third consecutive snow day for students. Central administrative offices will open two hours late, while employees should follow the school system’s weather-related reporting and leave policies.

Road crews are working through subdivisions and secondary routes, but the Virginia Department of Transportation warned that extremely low temperatures are slowing progress and that residents should not expect bare pavement yet.

The National Weather Service issued a Cold Weather Advisory from 7 p.m. Tuesday until 11 a.m. Wednesday. Temperatures around 8 degrees and wind chills below zero were expected overnight, creating a risk of hypothermia.

Students had already been scheduled for a two-hour early dismissal Wednesday for the end of the second quarter. With Thursday and Friday remaining student holidays for staff development and teacher workdays, the closure gives students the entire week away from school.

The second quarter will now end Tuesday, Feb. 3, allowing teachers additional time to complete assessments and grading, Superintendent Michelle Reid said. The scheduled student holidays will not change.

Free meal kits available during closure

FCPS will distribute free meal kits from Wednesday through Friday, Jan. 30, for children younger than 18 who may otherwise miss school meals.

Kits can be collected from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Annandale, Falls Church, Herndon and Mount Vernon high schools, as well as Dogwood, London Towne and Lynbrook elementary schools.

Children do not have to be present, and families will not be asked for identification or proof of eligibility. Each family may receive one kit per child for each day.

Wednesday’s kit will include breakfast, lunch, a snack and supper. Kits provided Thursday and Friday will contain a snack and supper. The food will be the same as items normally served in school cafeterias.

All school-based activities are canceled Wednesday, including extracurricular programs, athletic contests and practices, field trips, middle school after-school programs, adult education classes, professional training, homebound instruction and community use of school facilities.

School Age Child Care and Beyond the Bell centers will also remain closed.

County offices and transit begin reopening

Fairfax County government offices will reopen Wednesday after being closed Monday and Tuesday. Employees may use unscheduled leave, while teleworkers are expected to work remotely or take personal leave. Emergency personnel should report as scheduled.

Libraries, community centers, courts and other public facilities are expected to resume operations. Individual library hours could change based on conditions, however, and the Richard Byrd and Culmore branches will remain closed for HVAC repairs. The Fairfax County Park Authority had not announced its Wednesday status.

Fairfax Connector buses will operate limited Saturday service, with snow detours affecting some routes. Connector stores in Reston and at the Franconia-Springfield Metro station will operate from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

In Fairfax City, CUE buses will return to normal service, and trash and recycling collection will resume. The reopening status of city buildings remained unclear.

Vienna and Herndon continue cleanup

Vienna reported that crews had plowed and treated every town road by noon Tuesday, although many sidewalks remained obstructed.

Town offices, the Vienna Community Center, the Club Phoenix Teen Center and the Bowman House will open on time Wednesday. That day’s trash and recycling pickups will proceed normally, but households whose collections were scheduled for Monday or Tuesday must wait until the following week.

Herndon offices will also open during regular business hours, with liberal leave available to eligible employees. Wednesday trash collection has been canceled.

Herndon said parking at the municipal center and some downtown street spaces had been cleared. Crews were continuing to improve major routes and neighborhood streets before turning their attention to municipal parking lots.

The town and VDOT also responded to complaints about plows leaving snow at the ends of driveways and around curbside vehicles. Officials said plow blades push snow continuously toward the right side of a road and cannot be raised at every driveway without leaving travel lanes blocked.

VDOT recommended that residents facing the street place shoveled snow on the right side of their driveways when possible and clear an opening on the left to reduce the amount pushed back across the entrance.