The La Mesa-Spring Valley School District says it will take at least a month to clean up the damage from Monday’s storm at Bancroft Elementary.
The campus is at the bottom of a hill surrounded by storm drains that got clogged in the sudden downpours and flash floods.
Five hundred students and 60 staff members were safely evacuated and are now holding classes at nearby Spring Valley Academy while their campus is dried and disinfected.
“Safety is the No. 1 priority here. We don't want to rush anyone back into conditions if they're not safe to be rushed back into," said Robert Cochran, the district's chief safety officer.
District officials have determined that the damage was so bad that flooring in every classroom and office will have to be replaced. That is expected to take until the end of February.
The campus was devastated by high water, mud and debris.
Students were in class and saw it all happen in a matter of minutes before they were evacuated.
"It was kind of making me nervous because I was like: ‘Oh my God, what if it comes into my classroom?'” said Bellamy Haylock, 11, a fifth grade student.
Fourth grader Faith Cooney, 10, said, “I looked out the door after recess ... and it was, like, really flooded.”
Donations and support from across the district continue to be designated to Spring Valley Academy, where the administration found space to set up temporary classrooms. Extra staff, including counselors, have also been included to help with the social and emotional needs of the displaced children.
“Those needs are being addressed every day because kids are saying: ‘Look, I’m overwhelmed. I need to spend some time talking to my teacher.' So someone else takes over the class so they can spend time with their trusted adult," said Dennis Blevins, president of the La Mesa-Spring Valley Teachers Association.
Blevins also said the natural disaster had presented the opportunity for a significant teachable moment. "When things happen in life, people come together and support each other through it," he said.
He also reflected on a quote from the late children's TV host Fred Rogers, who said: "When crazy things happen in the news, look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”
Franci Filskov picked up her daughter Faith from the school bus on Thursday afternoon.
“She seems to be OK. It's a little, you know, unsettling at first, but she knows all the staff and the faculty and all the kids. So it makes it easier, I think," she said.
