Richmond, Henrico and Chesterfield public schools will be closed on Monday due to the potential for severe storms in the afternoon hours.

The National Weather Service is forecasting high winds and "long-lived, widespread and intense" storms through the late afternoon hours, with a 30-44% chance of a tornado in the region.

Chesterfield's schools will add five minutes to the beginning and end of the school day when they return from Spring Break.

"We must recapture instructional time to meet requirements for instructional hours set by the Virginia Department of Education," Chesterfield's school district wrote on Facebook. "Starting on April 6, 2026, and continuing through the remainder of the school year, all schools will start 5 minutes earlier and dismiss 5 minutes later. This small change allows us to recover instructional time while minimizing disruption to schedules and without adding days to the school year."

Henrico's schools are describing the day as an "independent remote learning day."

"To keep our buses, students and employees out of danger, Monday, March 16, will be an independent remote learning day for all students," the division wrote. "Staff should telework. Operations supervisors will contact their staff directly."

Richmond Public Schools students will work virtually on an asynchronous basis.

Contact Michael Phillips at mphillips@richmonder.org.