Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Officials Say Monday School Dismissal Was To Ensure Student Safety
Although some parents were puzzled by the sudden decision of early dismissal for all Lawrence County Schools Monday afternoon, officials emphasized that the decision was made purely to ensure student safety.
Little notice was given that schools would dismiss at 1:50 p.m. School personnel said they received notification at 1:30 that leaders were considering early dismissal.
The reason behind the hasty decision was that school officials, themselves, had little time to consider safety issues.
It was after 1:00 p.m. when school officials learned that the morning’s heavy rains were causing water to rise quickly in both the northern and southern portions of the county.
The situation posed very real concerns regarding the safe transport of children back to their homes. It was not until 1:45 p.m. that school officials, under the advisement of emergency management personnel, opted to issue the early dismissal order.
They quickly contacted news agencies in order to get the word out to parents.
On standby, bus drivers began afternoon pickup as quickly as possible, then transported youngsters back to their homes – all the while hoping that waters in low-lying areas would not rise to a dangerous level.
Although many believed the early dismissal was due to a lightning strike at Lawrence County High School, officials said this was not the case.
The lightning strike occurred near the science and vocational buildings around 11:00 a.m. resulting in some smoke and damages to electronic equipment. The strike also incapacitated the schools smoke alarm system.
Students were evacuated so that fire department personnel could determine whether the incident posed any safety hazards. Finding no immediate danger, students were returned to their classes within an hour.
E.O. Coffman Middle School Principal Robin Thompson concisely summed up the dismissal situation in an email sent to parents Tuesday morning.
She explained, “Often, we second guess decisions made in regard to weather. What we all must remember is that Lawrence County is LARGE and has many, many miles of roads that are not all paved and flat, with adequate bridges. If our leaders err on the side of caring about students’ safety we should all be very grateful.”
