BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. -- Under the shadow of a battered water tower declaring “Bay St. Louis, a Place Apart,” workers weren't taking a day of rest on Sunday at the North Bay Elementary School.
With less than 24 hours to go before kids return to class, crews scrambled to apply the finishing touches to the 17-unit prefabricated school, one of several that will accommodate students from K through 12 across the Bay St. Louis-Waveland School District.
A giant backhoe swung drainage pipes for workers laying the ground for a rudimentary playground; elsewhere, large men from the Precision 1 installation team carried child-size chairs into classrooms.
Inside, text books were stacked in large boxes while brightly colored just-for-fun reading invitingly lined the walls. Teachers will arrive later Sunday to give each classroom an individual touch.
Less than 100 yards away, more contractors surveyed the malodorous old classrooms ahead of demolition; the walls were blown out by the storm surge, the watermark reached above the doorways; computers, desks, books and games are scrambled in moist, pungent heaps.
A homework assignment on the chalkboard -- “Phonics: pages 48 and 49” -- recalled the routine before Katrina struck.
Teens hang on and out after Katrina
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This is a fantastic report. It maybe that only the people that live along the Gulf Coast, like I have all my life will appreciate the magnitude of the damage these storms can produce. Thanks for the report and the pictures. I also want to thank Fema, all the other Volunteers of the other Agencies that contributed there time and help for this cleanup. When I went through Carla, we had no Government Agency to give assistance to us. We and friends of ours aided us and we helped ourselves to get back on our feet. Everyone should count their blessings.
Arlyne Larrabee Rockport, Texas (Sent Nov 6, 2005 2:03:42 PM)
It is so wonderful to read this story and know these contractors are working hard at getting some normalcy back into these kid's lives...My husband attended this school in the '60s and it's uplifting to hear that people are working hard to bring this school back:)
We've also dedicated our site Generation2b @:
www.generation2b.com to the Bay St. Louis area schools, we are working at getting school supplies sent down and also gathering BoxTops for Education to donate...
I think ten years from now, the schools will be back up and running, and perhaps better than before...
MSNBC keep up the great work on reporting on these two communities, you are doing a wonderful job!
Best wishes,
JoAnn Bush
Los Angeles, CA
www.generation2b.com
JoAnn Bush, Los Angeles, CA (Sent Nov 6, 2005 2:44:09 PM)
great! the chrildren need a school
andy,ms (Sent Nov 6, 2005 4:16:45 PM)
As an educator my heart goes out to this community and its schools. I can't imagine starting over with everything. School provides a stability to the children. My prayers are with the teachers and students.
Rebecca Edwards Lenoir City, TN (Sent Nov 6, 2005 4:23:08 PM)
Good luck in your endeavors in returning to a pre-Katrina life. My thoughts are with you.
pat VanBuren Kansas City Kansas (Sent Nov 6, 2005 4:39:47 PM)
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