KANSAS CITY, Mo. — School leaders in the Kansas City area are reviewing tornado safety procedures following the tornado in Moore, Okla. that killed seven children at one school.
Tornado drills are common in schools in the Midwest and important to remind students and staff where to go and what to do in an emergency.
In the Olathe School District, children are put in fortified interior areas away from windows and doors. They walk through the buildings and determine the best optimal sheltering spot for students. The Hickman Mills School District follows similar protocols, with primarily older schools.
“We’ll have them put their heads into their laps and up against the cinder block wall and away from as many windows as possible,” said John Baccala, Hickman Mills School District spokesperson.
In the Blue Valley school District, 20 of its 26 schools have basements. They also have some rooms that are reinforced with steel doors that serve as shelters inside the school.
In Kansas City, Mo., 14 of its 34 schools have basements but not all are designed as tornado shelters.
Schools on both sides of the state line are required to have every school in their district participate in tornado drills several times a year.
Check with your child’s school if you’re concerned about safety procedures.
As of Tuesday evening, Moore emergency officials reported nine children died in the tornado; seven were at Plaza Towers Elementary School, two were in another location.
