Strong winds from a tornado tore the roof off Blue Mountain Elementary School on Mountain Road, Tilden Township.
“We are all shocked and devastated by the destruction caused by the tornado at the school. Seeing the damage was absolutely surreal and very emotional, as BME and every student, teacher and staff member there is like family to us,” said Angela Potts, BME parent.
Her daughter Emma is a student at BME in Mrs. Linda Johnson’s Kindergarten Class.
“When we went to the school right after the tornado struck Thursday evening, my daughter Emma, 5, burst into tears at the sight of the devastation. I tried to hold back my tears to be strong for her, but it was not easy to do. How do you explain to your child what happened to their school and why? All we could do is reassure her that she will still start school, somewhere, with her friends next month, with her favorite teachers, and that her school will rebuild. Her first concern however, was making sure that Mrs. Johnson and Miss Wardecke were ok and making sure she could give them big hugs. The moment we saw them both, Emma did just that!”
Principal Miss Rachel Wardecke was in the building at the time of the tornado. She was able to escape without injury.
“It is by the grace of God that our principal Miss Rachel Wardecke was not injured after being trapped,” said Potts.
BME Cleaning Bee is this Sunday, July 12, starting at 9 a.m.
“BME will persevere, we are a very tight knit school family and pull together in a time of need or time of crisis,” said Potts. “God works in mysterious ways and why he chose to channel the tornado through our school we will never know, but with his guidance, BME will come together and rebuild.”
“We are still planning to start school on schedule, Aug. 18, location to be determined,” officials posted on the school facebook page. “We will keep you posted on updates as they occur.”
