Keeping Our Children Safe

The fire alarm went off Monday, March 14, at 10:29 a.m. It has been an absolute whirlwind since then! Allow me to inform you of the events that took place.

• When the alarm went off, a thick black smoke was already visible outside the bathroom and in the main foyer of the building.
• 911 was called immediately and we verified the smoke was coming from the boys’ bathroom between the Linden and Maple Communities.
• All students and staff were out of the building in less than a minute. It was 10° outside and no one had their winter coats on.
• The fire chief and his crews verified the location of the fire.
• While this was happening, I was on the phone with the superintendent, arranging buses for evacuation.
• As the fire was contained and localized we identified the gymnasium as a safe indoor location and brought all of our students in through a side entry. It was confirmed that buses were on their way shortly.
• I addressed the students and the staff to let them know they were safe and that they would be transported to the fire station where they would be safe and warm.
• While this was happening, firefighters extinguished the fire, only 14 minutes after the alarm went off.
• Firefighters worked closely with our building custodian to begin ventilating the building. This process required dropping the temperature of the building to nearly outside temperatures, enabling air to flow out much more quickly.
• School Reach messages informed parents and emergency contacts of the situation and when and how they could pick up their children.
• Buses arrived. We transported students with respiratory concerns and from youngest to oldest.
• As parents arrived we created a slow and steady checkout process. This was done to streamline decision-making and ensure the safety of the students. The students were warm, safe, and supervised.
• As the line of parents and caregivers dropped, we tallied the number of remaining students.
• At the same time our terrific food service department was putting together bag lunches based on the number of students and staff remaining.
• When the line of parents and caregivers ended, the lunches arrived.
• While some staff ate lunch with students, others were granted access to the building to quickly gather personal belonging and valuables.
• Students and staff were moved into the fire station’s training room immediately following lunch.
• I met with the half of the staff at a time to debrief while the other half supervised the remaining students.
• As the end of the school day approached we arranged abbreviated bus routes for the remaining students, making sure adults escorted them home if needed.
• Parents were notified that they could enter the building between 8:00 and 9:00 p.m. to get their children’s belongings.
• We determined that smoke damage called for the removal of all items in the Linden and Maple Communities and that school would have to be canceled for students on Tuesday.
• That evening, parents and students streamed into the building to obtain jackets and backpacks.
  

Of course, this is a much abbreviated version of the amount of decisions and events that took place, but hopefully it gives you a glimpse into all that happened to keep your children safe. As I told them – books, backpacks, notebooks, crayons, and “stuff” do not make a school. They make the school. The magic that happens inside their heads as they learn each and every day is what makes a school.