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London ISD closes all campuses after Tropical Storm Harold damaged classrooms

London ISD.jpg
Posted at 4:33 PM, Aug 23, 2023
and last updated 2023-08-23 18:19:42-04

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — All London Independent School District campuses were closed Wednesday after damages caused by Tropical Storm Harold. The district called restoration crews in early to start repairs on the damages.

"We started seeing factors of electricity going out, fluctuating and then permanently going out in some buildings. We have four campuses so they were each experiencing different things going on," London ISD Superintendent Judi Whitis said.

Some of the major issues were electricity outages, leaks and even issues related to the district's septic sewage tank, which the Corpus Christi Development Services Department said many neighborhoods in the London area use as well.

"We’re working on that, on connecting to city services as a part of bond projects, but we’ve always been on a septic as well as a lot of homes in the area," Whitis said.

London ISD said the money to pay for repair services will not come out of the bonds the school passed earlier this year for renovations of classrooms, athletic facilities and technology.

London ISD is working with an insurance company to pay for repairs, but extra funds needed will have to come out of their regular school budget. The district said they do not know how much it will cost or how it will affect their school budget, but regardless, it was a necessary decision with student and staff safety as the priority.

"It’s never an easy decision to alter school schedules whether that’s part of a day, all the day, anything like that. It’s not a decision we take lightly," Whitis said.

London ISD said complete repairs can take several days and if needed, restoration crews will work during after school and on weekends.

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