Jeff Miller
EF5
The more news I can gather from this, the more I can believe that indeed, the school did put forth an effort. Yes, there were kids in hallways, and closets. And yes, there were also kids in the auditorium, and I understand some were outside, as the school was apparantly in a time of transition with early dismissal, sadly, near the same time as the tornado hit.
The problem then lies not with the PLAN that was in place, but in the ACTIONS of the officials with regards to the impending situation.
Television stations were constantly on air alerting of the danger. There was a huge lead time for warning, I understand, of at or near 20 minutes on this particular tornado. And, of course, anyone with two eyes could see the impending, ominous conditions approaching.
Here then is my thoughts.
Regardless of the plan of action that was in place, it was painfully obvious that a massive storm was bearing down on the school. Video shows the meso directly overhead - and school officials would recognize this as a great, dark cloud - with the looks of it, dark enough to possibly turn the outdoor lighting on. With a tornado warning in progress, and the ominous appearance of the sky (you don't need a meteorology degree to recognize something bad is about to go down), it would have been more prudent to NOT dismiss early (putting kids, parents and staff in more danger). They should have been placed in hallways, crouched low with their heads in their hands.
You may say "But thats where some kids were, and some probably died that way as well!" There is no denying that. The problem here is, when a large tornado strikes a major school, while kids are in the building, no matter where you shelter them, the odds are, unfortunately, that some people are going to be very negatively impacted. What I am saying is the impact may well have been reduced if EVERYONE was in hallways, not scattered about in various areas.
With that said then, what could have been done differently? Honestly, I wasn't there, and I cannot cast judgement. Honestly, I was not in their shoes, and honestly, I do not know all the facts. But what I can say is this:
1. An observer should have been watching in the direction of the impending storm to bring constant updates to the Principal.
2. At the sight of the impending storm coming in with a tornado warning (tornado sighted or not), the kids should have already been in shelter. With such dark clouds, warnings, etc, there is no excuse for them to be in transition with the storm already upon them.
3. The transition should have been delayed as soon as it was realized the storm was already on them. Again, it doesn't take a met degree to see something bad was about to go down.
Yes, the school may have had the best intentions, a good plan, and done everything they could. I will back down on the previous "negligent homicide" though on this. However, I think that some deaths were likely preventable, and I think their plan ultimately failed. In short, NO ONE should have been up, running around, and in transition with an impending storm and a tornado warning, tornado sighted or not. Stricter enforcement and earlier shelter would have helped.
The problem then lies not with the PLAN that was in place, but in the ACTIONS of the officials with regards to the impending situation.
Television stations were constantly on air alerting of the danger. There was a huge lead time for warning, I understand, of at or near 20 minutes on this particular tornado. And, of course, anyone with two eyes could see the impending, ominous conditions approaching.
Here then is my thoughts.
Regardless of the plan of action that was in place, it was painfully obvious that a massive storm was bearing down on the school. Video shows the meso directly overhead - and school officials would recognize this as a great, dark cloud - with the looks of it, dark enough to possibly turn the outdoor lighting on. With a tornado warning in progress, and the ominous appearance of the sky (you don't need a meteorology degree to recognize something bad is about to go down), it would have been more prudent to NOT dismiss early (putting kids, parents and staff in more danger). They should have been placed in hallways, crouched low with their heads in their hands.
You may say "But thats where some kids were, and some probably died that way as well!" There is no denying that. The problem here is, when a large tornado strikes a major school, while kids are in the building, no matter where you shelter them, the odds are, unfortunately, that some people are going to be very negatively impacted. What I am saying is the impact may well have been reduced if EVERYONE was in hallways, not scattered about in various areas.
With that said then, what could have been done differently? Honestly, I wasn't there, and I cannot cast judgement. Honestly, I was not in their shoes, and honestly, I do not know all the facts. But what I can say is this:
1. An observer should have been watching in the direction of the impending storm to bring constant updates to the Principal.
2. At the sight of the impending storm coming in with a tornado warning (tornado sighted or not), the kids should have already been in shelter. With such dark clouds, warnings, etc, there is no excuse for them to be in transition with the storm already upon them.
3. The transition should have been delayed as soon as it was realized the storm was already on them. Again, it doesn't take a met degree to see something bad was about to go down.
Yes, the school may have had the best intentions, a good plan, and done everything they could. I will back down on the previous "negligent homicide" though on this. However, I think that some deaths were likely preventable, and I think their plan ultimately failed. In short, NO ONE should have been up, running around, and in transition with an impending storm and a tornado warning, tornado sighted or not. Stricter enforcement and earlier shelter would have helped.
