3 days ago
Cleanup underway at Leeds Primary School after lightning strike starts fire
LEEDS, Ala. (WIAT) — Cleanup is underway at Leeds Primary School after lightning struck the building and caused a fire Friday.
A portion of the roof of the school is now tarped over after fire fighters had to pull off shingles to get at the fire. Teachers scrambled to move all of their materials over to the elementary school so that the planned literacy and math camp can begin on Monday as scheduled.
'I could see them pumping water into the roof, so I knew what the aftermath of that was going to look like, and so it was definitely heartbreaking,' noted Johannah Hudson who works as a reading interventionist at Leeds Primary School.
About 51 students from Leeds Primary School attended their first day of 'Literacy and Math Camp' over at the elementary school. 15 classrooms were impacted, mostly by water damage according to Leeds Fire Department Chief Chuck Parsons. Hudson was inside the school on Friday afternoon, preparing for the camp, when she says it really started to storm.
'There was a big lightning strike,' she recounted. 'It was loud, I've heard it that loud before at home and various places.'
Lightning confirmed cause of Leeds Primary School fire
Hudson said she didn't realize something had happened until she smelled smoke.
'As I got closer I started to smell it,' she said. 'I called 911 and when I was on the phone with dispatch, that's when the fire alarms in the building went off.'
Parsons said the fire department, which shares the same campus, was able to respond in under two minutes. Additional agencies also helped to put down the fire. Leeds City Schools Superintendent John Moore briefed us on the progress being made:
'We're working with a restoration company, we have a lot of ceilings down on the inside,' he explained.
Moore said once they get past the environmental cleanup, there may be an opportunity to help move desks and other items. Hudson is confident they'll be able to recover from the unexpected set back.
'We have a great community in Leeds, and so I have no doubt we're going to rally back and come back stronger than ever,' she noted.
While the math and literacy camp will continue to meet at the elementary school for the next two weeks, the goal is to be able to clean up and renovate the primary school in time for fall classes which resume Aug. 6.
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