Today marks the four-year anniversary of Hurricane Michael crashing into the Florida Panhandle as a Category 5 storm. While progress has been made toward putting the ravaged communities back together, there’s still a long way to go. Blountstown elementary students and staff took another step toward recovery last week as they helped break ground on their new school.
Today, almost 4 years after #HurricaneMichael left a path of destruction, we celebrated the groundbreaking for the new Blountstown Elementary School. From the looks of it, we have plenty of students ready to go to work! pic.twitter.com/ZlbnAACTKD
— Jay Trumbull Jr. (@jaytrumbull) October 6, 2022
The Calhoun County Elementary School suffered such significant damage from Hurricane Michael, officials declared the building a total loss. Since then, students have been scattered among campuses and learning in portable buildings with support staff, like cafeteria workers, driving in between.
Former Calhoun County Superintendent Ralph Yoder spoke with WFSU shortly after the storm.
"It’s taken some creative thinking to make this work, but it’s been a team effort and I’m very thankful for that and the patients of our staff and our community," Yoder said in October of 2018.
School officials say they’re ready to get their elementary students back under one roof and back to a sense of normally, but there will still be a bit of a wait before that can happen. Construction on the new building isn’t expected to be complete until the fall of 2024.
