Students at Emerson Junior-Senior High School got an unexpected day off after a car crashed into utility poles, causing a power outage that left the school without electricity and forced classes to be canceled.

The outage affected much of the town, leaving homes and businesses without power for hours. It took about 12 hours for power to be fully restored as crews worked to repair the damaged utility poles. While the situation caused disruption, students quickly realized they had a surprise day off.

For many Emerson residents, the outage was inconvenient, but for students, it turned into an unexpected break from school. Once the news spread, reactions quickly shifted from confusion to excitement.

Students had mixed reactions when they first found out school was canceled.

“At first I was confused, but then I realized we had no school and I was pretty excited,” said Jacob Murphy.

Other students felt the same way.

“I didn’t believe it at first, but once I saw the message, I was hyped,” said Nate Caiola.

Since it wasn’t a snow day or planned closure, the cancellation surprised almost everyone.

Without school, students spent their day in different ways. Some stayed home and relaxed, while others tried to go out when possible, even though the power outage made things more difficult.

“I just stayed home, slept in, and played video games for most of the day,” Jacob Murphy said.

Even with the power out for much of the day, students still made the most of it. Once electricity started coming back, some were able to go out or connect with friends.

“It was unexpected, but I’m not complaining about a day off,” Jacob Murphy said, reflecting how many students felt about the surprise break.