Lincoln Elementary School in Great Falls is closed to start the week after a wind storm blew the roof off the building on Sunday.
The Great Falls Public Schools district is working on a relocation plan for many students, though officials learned midday Monday that some of the building is deemed safe for use after the announced closure on Monday and Tuesday.
“The north half of the building is 100% occupiable,” said Lance Boyd, executive director of student achievement for the district. “Grades K, 1, 2, and 3 are able to stay at Lincoln Elementary.”
He added that plans are underway to temporarily move fourth-grade students to Lewis and Clark Elementary, while fifth- and sixth-grade students will be moved to Paris Gibson Education Center for class on Wednesday. It’s unclear how long the repairs to the school will take.
Widespread windstorms ripped across northcentral Montana on Sunday, with the highest gust of 92 mph recorded in the Deep Creek area south of East Glacier. A 71-mph gust was recorded at Great Falls International Airport late Sunday morning.
It was about that time that the wind blew off the top metal roof layer at Lincoln Elementary. Great Falls Public Schools Superintendent Heather Hoyer told Montana Free Press Monday that Principal Steve Yates notified her. It was a neighborhood resident who notified Yates, she said.
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Roof of Great Falls’ elementary school blown off in windstorm
The roof of Lincoln Elementary School in Great Falls blew off during a windstorm with gusts topping 70 miles per hour in Cascade County.
“It literally just peeled it off, almost like opening a tin can,” Hoyer said. “But there is a sub-roof underneath it.”
The additional roof layer beneath the metal top remains, Hoyer said. But heavy precipitation that hit Great Falls Sunday night increased the likelihood of water damage.
Videos on social media showed an artificial snowstorm — puffy, white insulation blowing all across the central Great Falls neighborhood. Hoyer said that the district confirmed with a contractor that it was cellulose insulation from 1988 when the roof was installed.
“That’s how we know that the insulation blowing everywhere was not asbestos,” Hoyer said.
Hoyer said the roofing contractor was one of many entities the district contacted to secure and repair the site. Electricity was out for several homes around Lincoln Elementary through Sunday night. On Monday, the school grounds were buzzing with utility crews, school district personnel, tree-removal crews and public safety departments.
Boyd said that a roof joist punched a hole through one of the massive pine trees in front of the school. Crews on Monday appeared to be taking down the biggest tree, which may have saved some homes farther downwind.
“If the flag pole and both of those pine trees wouldn’t have been there, the damage across the street would have been significant,” Boyd said.
On Monday evening, the Great Falls Public Schools Board of Trustees will hold a special meeting at 5 p.m., just before its regularly scheduled meeting, to consider a resolution declaring an emergency school closure at Lincoln Elementary. That meeting is at the district office building at 1100 4th St. S.
District policies and state law authorize the board to declare emergency closures. The policies also suggest that trustees adopt a resolution showing that a “reasonable effort” has been made to reschedule lost class time.
“That gives us a little more flexibility as far as making sure we have our time made up that we need to remain accredited and provide educational opportunities,” Hoyer said.
She said it’s the highest priority to get students back in front of teachers for class time as soon as possible. The district is also working to coordinate alternative lunch options and to find safe times for teachers and student families to retrieve personal items.
“Right now we have a lot of questions, and we’re going to lean onto those professionals who can assess the building and let us know,” Hoyer said.
The district announced parent informational sessions for March 10 at the Paris Gibson Education Center gym. The times are set by grade level. They are:
- 4:30-5:00- 5-6
- 5:00-5:30- 3-4
The district set up a web page dedicated to storm recovery information, and parents are encouraged to check the Parent Square program for direct communication and updates.
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