Advertisement

Classrooms at 3 schools flood in surprise storm; 1 campus closed

Share

A surprise rainstorm Wednesday afternoon left facilities at three Newport-Mesa schools damaged and sent students and teachers on a search for dry land.

Rain poured into California and Killybrooke elementary schools and TeWinkle Middle School during the brief downpour through roofs left open to install air conditioning systems.

When light rain began to appear early Wednesday afternoon, contractors working on the systems placed covers over the open parts of the roofs, district board President Martha Fluor said.

Advertisement

The rain, however, made its way in.

Computers, printers and carpeting are among the items that will need replacing while displaced students and teachers go to other spots throughout the district.

At TeWinkle, five classrooms, the library, computer classrooms and the office were damaged.

Damage at California included eight classrooms, the library and computer room.

Killybrooke took the biggest hit with 18 classrooms damaged and the electricity out.

“We ask for the community’s patience as we work through the effects of this freak storm,” Fluor said.

Students at TeWinkle used space in their gym and teen center to hold classes Thursday. Similarly, California is sharing undamaged classrooms and the multipurpose room with students whose classrooms were affected by the storm.

With Killybrooke closed for repairs and assessment, about 400 students were bused to Costa Mesa High School. There, they were greeted with music from the Costa Mesa High School band and a banner saying “Welcome Killybrooke,” Fluor said.

Costa Mesa High School principal Jake Haley gave a welcome message to Killybrooke’s students in the campus Performing Arts Center before they went off to class.

“Now you’ll get to experience what it’s like to be in high school,” he told the elementary pupils.

Killybrooke students occupied spaces throughout the Costa Mesa campus, including the tech center, science classroom, music rooms and art rooms.

They are expected to return to Killybrooke next week.

The district’s maintenance and operations staff have been cleaning up the three affected campuses since Wednesday night. The district will work on replacing materials and supplies that were damaged.

“We have insurance, so we will make sure that whatever’s been damaged can be replaced,” Fluor said. “Newport-Mesa is a family and when one member is hurt or in distress, we rally.”

Advertisement