BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — On April 8, Western New York will be in the path of totality for a once-in-a-lifetime event.
In the afternoon of April 8, the moon will pass directly in front of the sun creating a total solar eclipse.
It's a natural occurrence that happens across the globe about every 18 months but the total solar eclipse is viewable in different places each time.
The last total solar eclipse that could be seen in the U.S. was in 2017 and it wasn't really visible in WNY.
The next total solar eclipse won't be until 2044, making this year's a rare opportunity.
The Williamsville Central School District is one of the WNY districts that will be giving students the day off on April 8 and it has also ordered 25,000 eclipse viewing glasses for safe viewing.
"Our work and our planning for the 2024 solar eclipse has been years in the making," said Nick Filipowski, Executive Director of Communications. "Ultimately we decided for our students and our families in the district that the best course of action would be to extend spring break by one day and have April 8 off."
Filipowski continued on to say that when totality begins at 3:18 p.m., which will last for around four minutes, it is their peak dismissal time.
"It's peak dismissal time and we didn't want to be in a situation knowing this is a once-in-a-lifetime event and individuals who are eclipse hunters essentially will flock to our area to want to view this event," said Filipowski.
The Buffalo Public School District is also getting kids ready, handing out eclipse-viewing glasses, and incorporating lessons about the eclipse into its curriculum.
Katie Agen, Supervisor of STEAM, Buffalo Public Schools says she can't imagine what traffic would be like in Buffalo on April 8 if students didn't have the day off.
"I meet monthly with the eclipse consortium, and from what I've heard we are expecting up to a million people to come to Buffalo because of us being on the center line."
