An overnight dusting of snow, up to 2 inches at higher elevations, forced South Whidbey School District Superintendent Fred McCarthy to close all area schools just before 5 a.m. Wednesday.

The biggest concern has to do with a layer of ice on area roads left over from a previous snowfall last weekend. “The safety of our children is always our primary concern,” McCarthy said.

He added that the decision to cancel tonight’s 6:30 p.m. school board meeting will be made later in the day.

The National Weather Service in Seattle is predicting more snow is on the way, with accumulations of 1 to 3 inches. Following several days of sub-freezing temperatures, highs will be in the mid-30s with a south wind of 15 to 25 mph shifting to the west at 10 to 15 mph later this afternoon.

Thursday will see occasional snow showers followed on Friday by a return to sunny and colder conditions.

Schools affected by the closure include South Whidbey’s primary and intermediate schools (618 students total), Langley Middle School (413), South Whidbey High School (593), Bayview School (74) and Whidbey Island Academy (69).