A water main break last Thursday morning in the area near Minnie Howard school on Braddock Road temporarily eliminated water flow to the ninth-grade center and forced its closure for the day.

According to Alexandria City Public Schools spokeswoman Amy Carlini, students were en route to school when school leaders realized the situation was potentially untenable. Students were then redirected to the main T.C. Williams campus on King Street.

By 9:45 a.m. officials decided that the school could not open without water and students were bussed home at 10:15.

Between operating the buildings toilets and the daily food provisions, a lack of water was too much to overcome. Carlini said that based on existing code, food service professionals would not have been able to do their duties.

We could have provided them with hand sanitizer gel, but that wouldnt work for them, Carlini said. They would still need soap and water.

The impromptu day off interrupted ongoing standardized testing, since rescheduled for Friday.